Moonlight, Rain and Sakura
by JeffC FTW
Summary: In ancient Konoha, Prince Itachi Uchiha has relations with three women: his wife, his mistress and his true love. Love and hatred collide and threaten to shatter everything in this intimate tale of time long past. Based off "The Tale of Genji".
1. Land of the Rising Sun

**My brand new story is a direction from my usual fare, and I was inspired by the oldest romance novel in Japan as well as the rest of the world, "Genji Monogatari". The 1987 animated movie version as well as the anime "Genji Monogatari Sennenki" are main inspirations, along with Akira Kurosawa's acclaimed "Rashomon" (bits, at least). No love triangles - directly, at least - but one man has relations with three different women which is far more complex than you'd think.**

**What I love more than anything is cultural history rather than economics or politics, because it embraces the human imagination at our core. These are also the words of the presenter of the Crash Course YouTube video "Japan in the Heian Period and Cultural History". Feel free to check that out if you wish to get started on learning about the timeframe. :)**

**Disclaimer: Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto, Rashomon is Akira Kurosawa's baby, and "The Tale of Genji" belongs to Murasaki Shikibu. **

Chapter One

Land of the Rising Sun

The rainfall was murderous today, after what transpired in the afternoon.

Now they found themselves stranded here, underneath this old temple to hide out until the storm ended, because of the copious amounts as well as the heavy flooding that trailed after them...and cut them off from the one they had left behind, who was now going off in the other direction for a new life.

The couple could only hope that she would seek the peace they, too, were hoping for after all this time.

They had been riding on his horse, but the ride could only do so much. Plus, the stallion needed to be fed and watered, needed rest as much as they did. So, a couple attendants came out to take care of his prized ride, bringing him into the nearby shed which was empty at the present.

The priest of the temple was coming out from one of the main rooms unaffected by the disaster; he was a kind, elderly face with a bald head and dressed in black over white. He saw the pair, drenched like a pair of drowned rats, rushing up the stairs and ducking under the extended rooftop. If only prayers were answered that the heavens would stop weeping, but the young man of the couple knew that the skies cried because of what transpired not too long ago.

_She has gone out of our lives for good this time, though half of me is guilty as I am responsible. Therefore, today is a balanced shed of tears in ourselves and above our heads._

"My goodness, what is an attractive pair like yourself doing out in this weather?!" the priest exclaimed, helping them inside, after giving them time to wring themselves out the best they could on the porch. Indoors provided enough warmth as possible because there were torches and a bonfire lit. "Though it's not my place to say you should have stayed out."

"No, but it was not like either of us foresaw this," the young man answered, taking his knee-length dark hair out of its tie, taking some strands with and making him wince. It was going to take a miracle to get it back to its original form, and the same could be said for his beloved who had gone into the other room where there were shrine maidens. He watched as her heavy white kimono awashed with pastel blossoms vanished around the doorway.

His body stirred but went no further to the level of the roaring fire.

When he was dried to the body and garbed in a simple white _yukata_ rather than many layers, hair combed out and let down his back, he came back out and found himself before the priest, and there was the woman he was going to take as his wife as soon as they returned home to the capital.

"...I see," the old man said, admiring what he recognized as his sword in its ebony hilt, gilded with gold and a dragon. "I recognize you, sir. As I recognize this crest: the fan of the Uchiha royal family. Forgive me for not doing so at first." He bowed his head, giving the great katana back to its owner, but the formality wasn't needed under these circumstances.

"No, there is no need for ceremony. In fact, I could make do without that as long as I am away from the capital." He took his sword back and laid it down beside him. "My betrothed and I are returning home after recently meeting her family for the first time. We have been through...unfortunate circumstances as of late."

He found himself looking at the woman whom he said would be his wife as soon as they returned home, who was also in a pure garment. He'd been through enough trouble to get her to come back to Konoha. They lost loved ones; now they needed each other, as did certain others waiting for them.

And one whom he regretted hurting immensely had taken one person from them.

But based on the hard lines of his future second wife's face, it was going to need more work on her part to forgive this woman he thought of. Even if she had every right to have hard feelings.

He found himself drawn to the way she combed her long, palette hair by the bonfire they sat before with the priest who asked if they would like anything to fast on while the storm raged on outside. That magnificent work of art had been his previous wife's passed onto her by his hand: butterflies and flowers combed into the fair wood, inlaid with pristine pearl.

When she thanked the attendants that came with the hot tea and rice cakes, her voice was as sweet as everything in the springtime. Then she chose to speak to the priest. "You wish to hear the tale which led us to this point?"

"Of course, my lady - if your future husband wishes to share, as well."

Since the rain wouldn't stop anytime soon, why not?

The story they were about to tell the priest was of fierce and stormy passion, of short-lived harmony, and the cycle of joy and sorrow constantly evolving from one to the other.

~o~

_Some years ago..._

Japan was called the "land of the rising sun" because of the long-held belief that it was the first to be awakened when the sun rose in the east.

On this morning, the sun rose red as blood, not meant to indicate malice but to fill with life. The rays casted across maple trees, tall susuki grass, and various flora of the late spring. Now it came to rest upon a brightly painted red spiritual gate which marked the entrance to one of the greatest houses in the land of Konoha, surrounded by endless forestry.

The royal house of the Uchiha.

In Konoha as well as the rest of the country, the emperor was merely a figurehead whilst a great clan held the entirety in its grasp. The Oosutsuki, one of the oldest since eight generations ago, was the real power behind the crown. Thus gave the royal princes the privilege to certain special posts...but one was revered more than the others.

It was this particular man the sun found its way to shine upon this morning, casting red and gold upon a canvas of ivory as it was covered with clear streaks that came from a bucket of refreshing water that the attendant brought in just for him. He valued his privacy for such matters, so no one was witness to his morning ritual.

He was a beautiful specimen of the species. He was glorious to behold as he dropped his sleeping robe, displaying muscles carved by the gods and a rump so perfect it could be a pair of hilltops in harmony. Long hair, black as a raven's wing, touched the backs of his knees; it was sleek the way it was because of hours spent combing it.

He was Itachi Uchiha, imperial prince and grandson of the current living emperor.

Naked flesh bathed and then dried, he pulled the underlying garment given to him to place over his body and then called for help in dressing for the day, then heading out to the grounds where the plum blossoms were about to be in bloom in time for the festival, but after that...

_Then the cherry blossoms._

He used to not look forward to the festival or even the viewing of the majestic flora, because of a terrible tragedy in his life, though time healed his wounds - much of them. Sometimes he would remember THAT day like it was yesterday, because it affected him moreso than the loss of his parents before then.

The heavy layers of his kimono were placed over his body, the final on the outside being black as his hair, lined with fiery red, and then the tall black hat was placed over his head with his raven hair loose down his back, until that was tied low below his neck.

Other men in the land were the same in beauty tips - thin mustache and goatee - but Itachi Uchiha was not a sight to be seen every day, which marked him as a living god. Made him desirable, especially his long hair and nearly feminine features.

The reaction of the ladies of the court was living proof of that.

And now was the finishing touch, when his cousin, best friend and personal guard in one gave him the one thing that provided the minor but equally main difference: the hand-held fan inscribed by another's personal hand - that someone close to his heart - which was that cream-colored paper painted with the red-and-white fan of his family and scrawled elegantly with the writing: **夜にカラスのように飛ぶ****、朝顔****で日光浴をするために上がる赤い太陽で休む**

_"Fly like the raven into the night, rest at the red sun rising to bask in morning glory,"_ he breathed, keeping it open for a few more seconds before closing it and then leading the way for the cart waiting for him and the party.

~o~

_Many more years ago..._

The story of Prince Itachi Uchiha began many generations after the decades of upheaval came to an end under the Oosutsuki clan when the royal family relocated from the bloody Ame to the more peaceful Konoha. From never-ending rainstorms and civil wars to all-seasoned forests was peace established, and the Uchiha made a truce with the influential but slowly diminishing Oosutsuki.

Since then, there were no external military threats, but security and armed forces struggled to increase. In the meantime, the country would enjoy the sought-after golden age that came.

Besides Konoha, its neighbors followed suit and established alliances to thrive, but it wasn't purely economics that mattered.

Under Madara Uchiha, who was once a great warrior in his time, did stability nourish, and the ordinary people as well as the nobility worshipped him as though he were a god, but the truth was he had no absolution. His younger brother, Izuna, became a government official but eventually succumbed to death by the time of the birth of his nephew, Madara's son who became known as Crown Prince Fugaku.

Rumored as it was to many, it was the truth amongst the Uchiha that sometimes marrying distant cousins increased bonds and sanctions, and such was the case when the prince chose Mikoto, a beautiful concubine of the highest rank. It was unheard of to take the daughter of a lesser-ranked family as a wife, but it was clear the intimidating Fugaku loved her dearly and showed it by showering her with gifts and praises; she excelled in many fields despite low birth and scorn from peers - and bore two healthy sons. Both born in the summer but at different times.

The eldest was Itachi, who arrived in early June - following a severe flood which cleared away the drought which lasted a year prior. Thus his childhood was difficult, in the beginning, and wracked with reconstruction and learning the ways of the court ahead of time...

...and the second son was born half a decade later, when there were no difficult times. Aside from natural disasters every so often, the days continued to be devoid of warfare and major skirmishes.

Unfortunately, Mikoto died soon after the newborn was barely taken from her arms to be washed and swaddled. Her death devastated Crown Prince Fugaku that he shut himself away, mostly out of his sons' lives. Therefore, the boys grew up without a proper maternal figure, but their grandfather appointed none other than his son's newest concubine, who was known as Hikaru. She was unusually kind, like their mother Mikoto, which must have been why their father chose her: she reminded him so much of his late wife, and she presented herself in the lives of Itachi and Sasuke more than Fugaku ever would.

Their grandfather, the emperor, was said to have had the boys at court more often than at their own abode near the palace grounds. He would be present when Hikaru would teach his grandsons how to master calligraphy, poetry, music and art - even read illustrated scrolls when night fell.

It would soon be when Itachi found the will to start reading ancient stories to his younger brother, strengthening their bond as the years would go by.

In these days, the coming of age for a youth reaching adulthood was twelve, so when Itachi Uchiha stood before all - including his father's concubine Hikaru who was the mother he'd lost - and let himself be declared a man, the one whose approval mattered most was Sasuke, his younger brother who wanted to be like him even if he wouldn't be sitting where their grandfather was.

That day, Itachi became the pride of the Uchiha and the entirety of Konoha. Not just for his ethereal beauty, but his skills in archery, horsemanship, and his famous handwriting. There never seemed to be one flaw in his character.

The court ladies wrote of him in their poems and short stories - always seemingly about him and no one else...not even about his younger brother who was still only a child, but apparently would one day reach the standard of Uchiha attraction.

Soon after Itachi's ascension to manhood, his relationship with Sasuke began to deteriorate, and the brothers began to become isolated. Once had the princes been so utterly close that the elder swore to protect him from anything and anyone - but even he couldn't protect him from the epidemic that plagued the country in the monstrous autumn that followed well into the middle of spring.

This was a purge which happened only once every many decades.

Their father, the prince, perished months prior, having been caught up with his fragile heart even years after losing his wife that not even the comfort of Hikaru could mend it.

Itachi was stricken down with the illness, but miraculously, he recovered within weeks...but the same could not be said for his younger brother. For Prince Sasuke succumbed at the age of only eight years old.

At this time, the cherry blossoms were in late bloom.

Inconsolable for a long time after his beloved brother's death, thirteen-year-old Itachi spent many times at the small resting place, spending the entire day until his grandfather, the emperor, had to order the women of the household to take him away so that Lady Hikaru, now named head of them all, would tend to him. The loss of Sasuke was too great, moreso than it had been when their mother passed on - and even more than when their distant father died, thus naming _Itachi_ the Crown Prince.

Shisui Uchiha, a cousin and his closest friend, would be the one to notice the same look in the prince's eye from then on for many years: as if he were seeing something before him, yet nothing at all -

\- until those unseeing black irises would rest themselves on a very interesting specimen standing over the grave of his brother with a small bouquet of greens and wildflowers in her tiny hands.

Instantly, something in his frozen, preserved and protected heart began to warm in the core, but that was only the beginning of fate's mysterious hand to play.

**Hikaru the concubine was named after Prince Genji himself, whose first name is Hikaru, meaning "radiance". Think of it as an honorable nod, if that is such a phrase. XD**

**The beginning scene is in thanks to "Rashomon", where a priest, a commoner and a woodcutter are stuck at an old temple during a rainstorm and regale each other with three different versions of a rape/murder in ninth-century Japan (during the Heian period, possibly). We also begin the way it did - in the present - and then go back to the beginning, so I hope no one is confused. **

**Why Japan is called the Land of the Rising Sun, from Yahoo Answers: "Japan is an archipelago, or a group of islands, about 100 miles east of the Asian mainland. The ancient Japanese knew about China and Korea, but they did not know of any land east of their islands. They believed theirs was the first land awakened by the rising sun. The Japanese call their land Nippon, meaning **_**Land of the Rising Sun**_**. The Europeans learned of Japan from the Chinese, who mispronounced the name as Zipango. That word eventually evolved into Japan."**

**In the past, I've combined Naruto with feudal times, but now comes the HEIAN period which flourished with the culture: art, literature, and physical beauty even. These were the primary focuses of everything else. Which meant things were easygoing, but difficult at the same time. The people of the time and their views on the "transience of life", which is what the cherry blossom symbolizes.**

**The Japanese people in this time really had a strange sense of beauty besides how they looked, and blackening their teeth was one of them, though the process (termed **_**ohaguro**_**) was to preserve the teeth into old age as well as prevent decay like modern dental sealants do. Men and women in the Heian era first do this when they reach puberty. **

**So, to keep a long story short before I present the next chapter coming up, we are focusing on relationships and beauty, rather than politics and economics, since that was - as I said - the focus of Japan in the time.**

**Review please, in good old detail! :D**


	2. The Bride of Wisteria and Moonlight

**I really hope no one gets confused about the timelines, because I chose not to set this tale in a certain place within the Heian days. Though "The Tale of Genji" was said to have been published before 1021. So, feel free to explore the real timeline of Japan during the Heian times to try and figure out yourselves. ;D**

Chapter Two

The Bride of Wisteria and Moonlight

The custom she was to attend was for the one whom everyone was speaking of: the coming-of-age ceremony _genpuku_ for the Royal Prince himself. Even if she didn't feel like attending, her great-aunt insisted.

_I sometimes don't see why this even focuses on boys rather than girls._

She was twelve years old, on the brink of womanhood, so she assumed she and other girls her age would be given the treatment, but as Aunt Kazue explained, women were not as important as men - not in politics or even the battlefield. Hence they were to be seen and heard only when chance came. Other than that, they still had it easy as men did.

Izumi supposed she should be grateful. She thought this as she let her guardian kneel behind her and comb her long brunette mane herself. The thing was so long it reached the middle of her back. In more years, it was expected to exceed length and hopefully outshine all the other ladies, if she was to marry the heir of the Uchiha.

Her great-aunt was her late mother's aunt; both her parents were killed by bandits when she was still a small child. She raised Izumi and spoiled her, though she also trained her in the ways of a court lady. Mother Hazuki had been an Uchiha, which made her a distant relative of the one Kazue and Emperor Madara contracted her to. So, the answer was this: Izumi was half a member of the Miyazaki clan which was a small but influential ally of the powerful Oosutsuki. Originally, Hazuki Uchiha would have wed someone in the Oosutsuki, but it fell through somehow.

Her parents were dead now, so the details of her future marriage were up to both her legal guardian and eventual grandfather-in-law - the most intimidating but powerful and respected man in the land. Though because she was close to the Oosutsuki by connections only, she knew the emperor and his family were only on display with their strings pulled.

_I guess I should be lucky I might not end up as a concubine of the prince or one of the noblemen. If anything, I want what my mother had. So I should thank Aunt Kazue and His Majesty for this. _

The good things to look forward to were the fact she would have a purpose amongst the court involving poetry, stories and other similar matters. Though that meant she and her husband wouldn't be able to LIVE together for certain things, which she wasn't sure she could deal with, but she had no say in any of this. Might as well make the best of it, Kazue said.

Much of this was learned in the last few years, and she was a natural fast-learner, accepting even if she didn't approve of some things.

In the present now, she was with her aunt and their attendants in the Imperial Court Palace, witnessing the ceremony in which the one all eyes were on came out. In dark garments and the tall dark cap, face schooled into a perfect mask which could have been sculpted on him - she felt her lungs tighten at the sight of him and paid no mind to the other females around who undoubtedly felt the same.

Those eyes, black as lacquer, were so intense they could keep you in place. The pallid features might as well have been created by the gods and sent among the mortals. His hair, also black and shining, went a little past his shoulders with a tie holding it in place below the nape of his neck.

From that moment, Izumi Miyazaki began to feel certain emotions she was sure only _adults _could feel when she saw the face of the one she was set to marry - even if it were only the first stages, and anything could happen - but he didn't even seem to notice her.

She watched everything: he accepted the responsibilities of manhood in order to successfully continue family and court tradition...though she could have sworn she saw a faint twinkle in those depthless eyes, as if they hid more than they displayed. Which was something that was often misunderstood about women, so she found it in herself to sympathize with the boy - no, _young man_, now that he was given everything upon his shoulders.

"Quite the sight, isn't he, angel?" Aunt Kazue told her under her breath, smirking to one corner of her wrinkled mouth. Once, she'd been one of the most beautiful women ever seen. "It's a shame he has to see you after all of this. I remember when I had to get your great-uncle to see ME for the first time by just reading him what became one of my best poems of all time...when it involved him. You should do the same with His Highness."

She referred to the prince, of course. Poetry was something she was still mastering all the way, so for the time being, short ones which were otherwise filled with meaning were her hand's work alone, receiving all the praise they could get.

"And speaking of which, you have that gift you are to present?"

Right in her hands, in the small, narrow box carrying something she wrote by her hand. She had never felt so anxious, but kept it calm as she was educated.

When the time came for the giving of gifts, Izumi found herself kneeling before the young boy who didn't change his expression, and making eye contact with him made her feel smaller than she was. Though it didn't seem he was criticizing her, either. _And for a second, I thought it was my kimono - this brown matching my hair, covered with white blossoms and cranes._

What she meant was that she thought she looked too plain in this thing, despite being a child in appearance. After this day, in a few months, she would have her turn in his position even if she wouldn't get all this attention he had. And that meant she would receive the pleated skirt rather than the cap, but that was perfectly fine with her.

_"Fly like the raven into the night, rest at the red sun rising to bask in morning glory."_

Why did she have to drift off momentarily like that?! But thank the gods people were smiling and praising her for the gift to the Crown Prince - whose kind smile made her go soft like porridge at her core.

Even Emperor Madara was thoroughly pleased with this, though she was sure he and her great-aunt were going to have another audition about her and his grandson's future.

And that meant she had more work to do on her part.

~o~

Other than the details discussed between the emperor and the matriarch of the Miyazaki, the relationship between Itachi and Izumi started from the _genpuku_ when she presented him with the fan he would carry in his hands from then on.

No one had ever given the prince such a sincere gift as this. That was what began to link him closer to the girl he had only met that day.

_It's custom I take a bride after coming of age. I can't take this personally._

It disappointed them - more on her part, that is - that they could not visit each other as frequently as they wanted, though that meant Itachi could start that move as the man he now was, on his grandfather's suggestion. In the hopes it would increase their future bond as husband and wife, so that they would grow together and make the possibilities of life easier with each other.

The young prince was greatly saddened that his brother could not be here to share his happiness with him - only for the sorrow to return. Even if he wanted to avoid the blossoming of the sakura at their time of year, he had no right to be selfish and miss out on one of the greatest, short-lived joys. Izumi was the reason he was to try to enjoy the lovely, sweet pink flowers on their weeping branches, the winds swaying them and casting petals in all directions.

Perhaps later that same month after the cherry blossoms finished their time, a year after coming of age, Itachi realized that he could begin to appreciate what was in front of him while it was there. She was part of it.

It began that one time she visited him once more with her great-aunt and attendants...and she was standing on the bridge during the night when the full moon was at its highest, and the majestic wisteria had its turn.

This was the prince's first time seeing a girl like that, finding out she loved the moon anytime, that the full one was the best - especially in the harvest season which would arrive much later. He couldn't agree more on that.

When he thought of the wisteria, he thought of his mother Mikoto, for she loved it more than anything. Because it was a welcoming sign, a wish of luck especially for the start of a new marriage, the celebration of youth and vitality...but there was something much deeper: _genuine affection and devotion._

Izumi was still here when she apparently suffered a cold, the next day after she and Itachi were on the bridge that night, simply talking about the moon and the season. Kazue Miyazaki wished to take her grandniece back home, but Madara Uchiha insisted the girl stay here and not get worse on the trip. He even forbade his grandson from going near her, to have close contact.

While he respected the space, there was one thing the prince had to do that he knew could make his intended feel better: he brought her a branch of the flowers and wished her all the better.

That would be the last time he would see her, for another six years.

She had changed significantly, not just with her ways - if retaining that serene kindness and compassion - but in her face as well. Her rich wood-hued hair had become nearly long enough to touch her ankles. She went through doing what all women would in plucking her eyebrows, before powdering her face to give it a lighter appearance, finishing with delicate arches she smudged above where her natural brows used to be...and finally, her dainty lips were painted red. And when she smiled, lips parting a little, he saw the darkness which was the blackener.

And that kimono: pure white for the bride, covered about with purple camellias and tied with a blue sash. She was ready to marry him now, and he was ready to marry her. They would be uniting their families together, which further linked the Uchiha to the Oosutsuki.

But Itachi could wish it was on the same level as Izumi clearly wanted.

~o~

Their wedding night was an event which nearly became a nightmare.

He was prepared for this, though he had no idea about women's secrets. Therefore, he was apprehensive, despite reassurances from Shisui as well as his grandfather who oversaw the lesson once again.

"Believe me when I say, Itachi, that I know what a woman's body looks like, though it is abhorrent to speak of it aloud with your own tongue," Madara explained with an amused smirk, though his eyes spoke another story. "But you should know that the first time hurts for a woman, and that is all you should know. Be gentle until you both are accustomed to the lock and key routine."

Even that didn't stifle Shisui's sniggers when they were away from the old emperor's company, just outside the bridal chamber where _she _was waiting for him, wearing a simple white sleeping garment like he was. He peeked through the bamboo curtain and observed, not saying a word. Inside was a screen scenery lush with magnolias in pink and white, accompanied by fresh green leaves shaped like hearts, all against a background of blue-violet. As if to represent the fact that everything, including possible love, was natural and would happen as they should.

He tried to think of this as a chance to move forward and rejoice with newfound happiness. It was what he wanted out of everything else in his accomplishments.

That screen would block out clear images of what they would do tonight, where only they had each other's eyes and would tell no one else. But outside the sanctuary was a small bonfire lit to block out most of the cool night coming in.

Shisui cleared his throat. "Ahem, well, good luck, my friend." The prince nodded and bade him good night before going in to his new bride.

_We're not expected to have children too soon, but it has to happen sooner or later. _

Her back was to him, long hair a dark contrast against the pristine white. He walked in, ducking through the sheer curtain that was hung over that entrance. The lamp in their surroundings was lit, providing more than enough light. "Izumi."

"Itachi," she answered, slowly turning around and looking up at him from her place on her knees. The warmth of her hair and her black Uchiha eyes were illuminated by the flickering candle between them. He found his place before her, mimicking the respectful kneel.

"You look very beautiful tonight." He meant every word of it, but also because he had no idea what else to say. They had the entire night together and several more days to enjoy their new marriage, before it would go back to "normal".

Her cheeks took on a faint shade of pink which he thought was very endearing, and the next thing he knew, she was clinging onto him. His arms subconsciously came up to wrap around her back. She was very shy now, but willing at the same time - completely different than the confident girl he knew before.

The robe fell off her shoulders, exposing fair, porcelain skin without a mark, and as he ran his fingers through her hair for the first time, he discovered it was soft as silk as it was rich in color as the woods...and it was part of her intoxicating smell, combined with perhaps plums and flowers. He continued to comb his fingers through her hair, his inner body on fire with spark after spark, slowly getting the core going.

"Are you ready?" Itachi asked softly in her luscious mane, lowering his face to find its place where her graceful neck and shoulder met. The contact of his lips against her skin made her shudder, and she nodded.

"I've waited for this night for too long, Itachi. But at the same time -"

Her sentence was cut off abruptly, and he was taken aback by a sharp gasp when she immediately fell limp in his arms. Itachi drew back to try and examine her, then shook her a little because for a moment, he feared she DIED in his arms before they began their first night as husband and wife!

He had to lay her down on her back gently; when he did, not only did her forest of hair spread out like a wide puddle, but the white cloth of her robe parted so that both _her breasts _were on display. _Two pristine moons tipped with the rosy pink of blossoms..._

Itachi admired them for only a second, thrilled, but had to cover them up before shouting for the physician.

By the time the healers did arrive, his wife came around without any trouble, stemming his fears of early death. Shisui had come for the show, disappointed nothing exciting - not THIS - took place, and expressed his relief she was well. If she'd died on her wedding night of all nights, it would have been a disaster.

"You worries are unfounded." She adjusted the front of her robe while smiling weakly and speaking to all of them. "I've had fainting spells since I was a child. Whether from overwhelming excitement or worry. My mind and body go blank at once."

_Just natural exhilaration and worry...but worry for what?_

When they were alone once again, he had to ask her himself, pleading to open up because they were married and could have no secrets between them, and this was what he got: "I was excited for what we were going to do, but I wanted to say something I feared you wouldn't return, after all these years..."

It happened to be none other than the three words which had meaning but could not be spoken so loosely, no matter if there was history between you. He had to avoid eye contact and dwell within his thoughts, as the wind picked up through the bamboo and gauze curtains, admitting his own fears.

"My mother died after birthing my brother, who also died young. Thus I feared I'd lost you. I cannot let my heart bear it again."

Therefore, they did not consummate their marriage until the following night after the understanding was reached.

~o~

_Four years later..._

And so fair maidens could never resist the sight of the irresistible Prince Itachi Uchiha. That was the talk of the court.

During the trip, safely within the palanquin held by four people outside - and Shisui riding solo out there by his side - Itachi gazed down once again at the fan. They had ten years of history, but despite their understanding, he didn't feel fulfilled. Not even four years of marriage would change that. Not even the scripture she wrote beside the Uchiha fan.

Still, it gave him a sense of peace. Being in her company was more than enough, and she knew that.

"Don't let your wife know," Shisui joked from outside, "but I would love to not only spend the day racing horses with Your Highness, but also to talk about _women._" He snickered without even covering his mouth, making the prince shake his head. _Shisui, you and your thirst for gossip._

When they finally arrived and he set foot upon the main Miyazaki residence, there was the first one he saw, kneeling before him, almost touching the floorboards, avoiding all eye contact with him. She was his wife's chief lady in waiting, despite being the youngest in age and earning a little jealousy from her peers as a result. The one who didn't openly gush at him as the other women would, though he spotted the familiar faint pink on her cheeks which matched her long hair that completely reached the floor, surpassing Izumi in the length.

He remembered her well: that young girl who visited Sasuke's resting place with the wildflowers she placed before his brother's epitaph. Emerald green eyes glazed like the grass after a fresh rain, rimmed with red either from crying already or on the verge as he'd only arrived at the time. Then, her blossom-colored hair was short to her ears and was crowned with a red ribbon.

He was intrigued by her, but when he approached the child, her eyes widened as she quickly bowed to her knees when she recognized who he was. She then told him that his brother, the other prince, was a dear friend of hers that their grandfather, the emperor, allowed her to play with. Though he was certain he recognized more than just friendship in those expressive eyes...

Her name was Sakura. _Named after the flowers which were still in bloom when my brother was taken from me._ She was the daughter of servants in the Uchiha household, but after Sasuke passed on, Itachi didn't see the girl again and didn't think too much of it - until years later when Izumi returned to marry him, bringing her entourage in tow...

...and the pink-haired girl was there, having blossomed to womanhood and embodied the season during which the cherry blossoms flourished early on.

Itachi had been with no women yet, despite hearing all stories from the men around him that it was behavior allowed, but he knew something within him began to _bloom_ just because of her presence and appearance in one.

When he and Izumi began to spend time together before the wedding, she told him Sakura had incredible skills in healing that few women cared to learn, even more than poetry or literature, though she did master in music as well as calligraphy as the rest of them...but what was mostly kept from the public was her torrid temper if someone offended her mistress or even a close friend, too few times being herself. _Fascinating._

Though, it seemed Sakura could care less if he were Prince Itachi Uchiha or not, despite showing proper respect and protocol.

He carried on then and there until he was met with his in-law who was kneeling in the great meeting room. Itachi asked Shisui and the others to wait for him while he and Kazue began to socialize, and he accepted what she always boasted: the best wine her late husband was proud to pass down from his grandfather's own hand in the ages.

"It's about time you came back to see your wife again, Itachi." Since they were family now, she was one of the few free to call him by his name, since it was just the two of them at the moment. "She's been anxious for your return that she threatened to fall ill, if Sakura's ingenious hands haven't been there..."

_**Genpuku **_**was a Japanese coming-of-age ceremony which dates back to the Nara Period (710–794 AD****). It marked the transition from childhood to adulthood in both males and females, assuming responsibilities of man and woman, though the males seemed to have more attention than the females because the latter were kept from official duties. The ages for the children, mostly aristocrats, were between ages 10 and 20. **

**Wisteria means everything Itachi thinks about. :') It's one of my favorites and one of the most beautiful tree flowers ever. Add in the moment when Itachi gives them to a sick Izumi was inspired by Genji giving his stepmother Fujitsubo (his secret and forbidden love, ugh standards) the same flowers. It's easy to say it's sick and creepy, but please research more on that if you want to understand. **

**Heian nobility had their odd beauty standards, as I've said before, but to glimpse the naked body was obscene, which implies that even lovers or married couples in bed didn't see each other completely. It's considered obscene especially in Japan today to show certain parts - specifically the genital areas. Though, I could have sworn some laws on that were softening up. I know for sure in many movies, everything about the body BUT the lowermost parts are viewed.**

**Izumi's maiden name, like in some past fics of mine, is that of the anime god himself (Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, you name it!). :D And her great-aunt Kazue was someone I introduced in "His Chosen Bride"; I'm just in love with the hoot of a woman she is, now that I can call her that. XD**

**When she loses consciousness on her wedding night due to excitement and worry, that moment comes from the opening of the 1987 "Genji Monogatari", when Yuugao (one of Genji's lovers) dies in his arms. **

**R and R! :3**


	3. The Pink-Haired Lady Refuses

**Chapter title comes from an old movie I hadn't seen, but only the title, on the TCM channel, "The Lady Refuses". **

**During this first scene, discussions about women in this time happens to be the same monologue in the 1987 movie. **

Chapter Three

The Pink-Haired Lady Refuses

There was nothing better than a wonderful horse race with Shisui - and he was beat this time, after more wins than his cousin, but there was no malice in their competition.

Now they walked over the bright red bridge from the stables and the track grounds back to the manor and its lush gardens, the water calm but illuminated by the shining sun overhead. The snow had long since melted, though the cold lingered, and the gardens were dead at the moment. But it wouldn't be long before the plum blossoms would arrive...

The talk was the usual about women: it was always difficult to find the _ideal _wife, when there was no such thing as complete perfection even if you made yourself look so on the outside.

Here was what Shisui had to say: "If I could give what little experience I have -" Which was a boast, of course, in contrary to what was really _factual_. "- it is nice to watch upper-class women grow up pampered by attendants, but then you know they lack personality if you are acquainted further," he finished with a scowl.

Itachi agreed and disagreed at the same time. Izumi did grow up pampered as his cousin said, though she wasn't selfish or lacked personality as mentioned. She was the kindest woman he'd met that she could have been mistaken for his mother whom he faintly remembered as a child. So had Hikaru before she died shortly after he married.

"Yet," Shisui added with a coy twinkle, "some people of humble status could also be suspect. There might be a chance I can find myself a good girl from a quiet, middle class home and be the happiest man in the world. With these girls, you can find that the unexpected sharpens your interest in her."

_The unexpected sharpens your interest in her..._

Just like a certain rosette he knew he had to one day have since it wasn't frowned upon in this society, though his mind at the back reminded him that his wife adored her chief handmaiden as a true friend. Which was why he intended to find out if Sakura was willing to accept him or not.

It was cruelty, if you asked him, to not consider the woman's feelings, since his side might have the right to have more without fear of the consequences, but even that could go too far. If anyone heard Itachi Uchiha say so, he was in deep with the fishes.

In the meantime, he and Shisui went on about how women who were too kind made their husbands faithless far too soon, but strong-minded women forgot their charms.

Sakura was strong-minded, he was told. Though he would see if he could get her to melt that structure down bit by bit if it could be just the two of them...

~o~

The plum blossoms would soon be in bloom, perhaps in a few days before the new season would begin. She could hardly wait, but the viewing of the cherry blossoms would always be the best time.

When the ume flowers would arrive in shades of pink, white and yellow even, it would mark the end of the brutal, deadly winter and the beginning of new life. Such was the transience her people obsessed and mourned over, but she did her best to ignore such things and make the best of it all. Just like her mistress tried.

That husband of hers, no matter if he was the Crown Prince or not, had been away since winter began. Sakura understood why the avoiding, no matter the norm, but he could have at least stayed with his wife he claimed to care so much about. There was just something about a man having more than one woman that just made her so uncomfortable, but it wasn't like she had the right to tell anyone - not even Princess Izumi.

Prince Itachi was the most handsome, most beautiful man ever seen that women swooned over him. And many of them claimed it to be love since their hearts were uncontrollable; she remembered feeling that way with Prince Sasuke when they were children, before he died. When the epidemic took him, her heart had shattered beyond repair, and for some months before her family left the Imperial Court for the Miyazaki household, she left flowers she picked to place at the young prince's tomb...

...and the very first time she did that was when she met his older brother, the heir himself.

Sakura had been intimidated by him, but when she left, she was haunted by him and had no idea why. She eventually dismissed it as foolishness and went on with her life; to become then Lady Izumi's servant was a nice change that helped her rise to the position she was now, as her chief lady-in-waiting. Hard work since childhood, including the medicines she learned to create from under the tutelage of the head physician, paid off. Making medicines and music, too, were her greatest passions above everything else.

In fact, in the present, Princess Izumi was just talking to her about what they all could do when her husband and his entourage came to visit them. The thought of the prince, whom she encountered occasionally but never had longer moments with, coming here made something inside her excited in a way she couldn't understand. _Perhaps it's just because..._

"I look forward to it, Sakura," her lady was saying as she helped the older girl prepare that morning, first helping her into the brand new, simple purple kimono lined inwardly with pink. "The sweet ume with their uplifting perfumes, their purple leaves...even those delightful fruits."

_And those fruits not only sumptuous to have with rice, but to make the best wine there is._

It was a shame that there were some parts of this country who considered plum blossoms a bad omen and therefore placed them near the "Demon's Gate", in the northeast where evil in every form lived. This innocent flower had NO right to such misunderstanding...but if you stopped to pay more attention, you would see it was meant to _ward off_ danger, not to attribute to the fact.

Before now, she'd been informed the prince arrived, and she had to go out and greet him as per custom by kneeling before him, well aware his eyes were intently on her and did her best to ignore it.

He was gone then, thanking her and asking her to tell her lady he was here, while on his way to seek Kazue Miyazaki, Izumi's great-aunt who was still alive even now, which was odd compared to the longevity of the average woman. The same could be said of his grandfather, Emperor Madara.

Sakura now was done readying the princess after brushing her hair with this magnificent comb that her mother left her before she died: butterflies and flowers carved into the delicate, fair wood while there was an inlay of pearl from the seashores.

She had to ask her mistress when they were finished. "You are not still ailing, are you, my lady?"

Izumi laughed and picked up her comb, fingering it mildly. "Not at all. Even if I was truly ill from worrying so much, your herbal remedies work wonders."

"...an ingenious hand it is to keep you alive and well before my arrival, my dearest wife."

And there indeed was the man himself, outside the screen door, but Sakura avoided looking at him altogether. She knew what the man's intentions were without words exchanged, but if her mistress noticed, she said nothing. "I shall leave you be, my lady," she told Izumi, bowing her head once and then getting up to open the door, quickly slipping past him despite the heavy layers of her kimono. _Anything to get away from you._

He never did anything TO her, but the fact she had no desire to be a concubine was what controlled her actions. If anything, she'd rather have an honorable marriage and thus ensure security.

If she had anything to say about it, she would tell him herself.

"It's been too long, wife," she heard him say, then peeked around the curtain by a little to see him close to her, holding one hand in his. Izumi leaned her head into his shoulder, then closed her eyes in content, savoring the closeness. "If only the winter wasn't so dangerous, and then I would have come here and stayed before the storms began. If only my duties..."

The princess shushed him, rocking into him. "You're here now. That's more than enough for me...except for some reason, I don't feel any warmer than I wanted to be. There is something troubling me," she confessed, and only Sakura knew what it was, since she was the only real friend her mistress could confide in. The thought in the maid's mind came out through the lips of the prince's wife.

"Itachi, rather than only enough...when are you going to open your heart all the way?"

But Itachi said nothing to that, the guilt present in his eyes.

Somehow, a little bit of Sakura softened at the sight, knowing a tiny fragment of WHY he was the way he was.

~o~

Since winter ended in the following month, the ume blossoms graced the lands with their sweet beauty before the new season, and that was more than enough of a blessing.

All the more reason to enjoy the purple leaves attached to close-petaled flora in shades of pink, white and sometimes yellow, which informed all that spring came sooner as a sign only. _And for it to be a symbol of protection of every wicked form, like demons. _

But note this: health was another factor, to which this flower would work as means to help all men and women start their lives over in a much better way. Simply put, it was a good luck emblem.

_It's a sad shame you can't find plum blossoms everywhere like you can find cherry blossoms. _

The weeks that followed were spent with prayers to the gods and games played as well as the finest sake served. Music filled the air. There was never one dull moment. It was Itachi's time to show off amongst the archers, showing all that he wasn't yet rusted as an old sword. When the winds were calm yet the air still a bit cold, their joyful spirits weren't dampened. The sun was shining so that nothing was grim and dark anymore, until next time.

It was then that he found himself looking first at his wife, smiling at her...but then it shifted - briefly - to the sweet woman behind her. Beneath that he was sure lay a core of steel swords were forged from. _If this event means that we need all the luck and fresh starts we can get, then I'll be needing it..._

Vibrant grass-colored eyes were the first to break contact with his so to avoid tongues wagging if anyone noticed. Disappointed, Itachi returned his focus back to the tournament.

Later on, the tea ceremony was held outside, so to engage in conversation from all sides, as well as to read verses and play music...and this was when Izumi announced that while she had a poem of her own, _Sakura _had a song to play.

It was something she concocted together and had another handmaiden join in - this one being blonde and blue-eyed, apparently close to Sakura than any of the others - and was composed of the flute held by the girl and Sakura's koto, as well as the one instrument his wife could play: the drum.

_I feel...at ease listening to a song of the ume blossoms._

Knowing SHE wrote it made all the difference, paying tribute to the ever rising desire in his body which was the most natural thing in the world. It was then he decided that when night came and it would be the two of them, he had to be the man who went to her. There was no telling if it would work or not.

And when night fell, he chose to let his long hair out of its tie so that she would find him irresistible just as he found her to be.

The chief lady-in-waiting had a room of her own, and he was making way for that destination as soon as there were no other servants around - and ensuring his wife might not need her for the rest of the night.

~o~

Playing her music always made her feel good about herself, but so had her mistress' poem. The words seemed to rapture her husband.

_"From weeping branches in the dead of winter, I sober and awaken. Sweetest fragrance, sweetest hue, I am yours until the singing birds of spring. Have me while I last, for the unforgiving cold ought not kill truest joys..."_

To another's ears, it would seem like Izumi was telling her husband that he should start taking advantage of their marriage more often than he used to, and that would mean learning to finally let go of his past. Because that was what Sakura knew better than anyone else. _As far as I am concerned, I'd say His Highness is still stuck in the past despite living in the present. And the princess has done enough of what she could._

The sad truth was that while women were entitled to enough rights, they had no willpower to fight back if their lovers made them unhappy in any way, if they chose to go back to their wives. Which was also why she refused to become the prince's mistress, if those were his intentions...

That night after the festivities were done for now, Sakura retired to her chambers, but for some reason, she couldn't sleep. The reason she was here, and still dressed but settling on reading some scrolls written by known authors for the sake of it, was due to the fact Prince Itachi insisted on giving her the night off so he could take care of his wife for her.

The rosette tried not to get angry, only hoping he was following through on any of his promises to Izumi...but she should have expected there had been another reason behind it.

She sat behind a screen of gold, painted with a graceful dark tree branch sprouting all over with the blossoms she was named for in shades of red and pink. But her attention was shifted away at a noise that caught her attention. Jerking her head behind her, Sakura saw the person who intruded on her private space - and gasped sharply when she saw _HIM _standing there. And with his long hair down which she tried not to be distracted by...!

"Your -!"

He cut her off with a simple finger to his lips, and she fell silent. Not because she didn't want anyone to know Princess Izumi's husband was in _her_ rooms, but she didn't wish for any malicious gossip to spread about herself.

She made the mistake of looking into his eyes and seeing the smolder in them, like coals within fire. He was still in his kimono of maroon over black, and he took in her in cream over green matching her eyes, and lush red trousers. It was THE worst mistake of her life, for he was heading her way, and she quickly stood to get away from him.

She should have counted on the fact he was stronger than her, for his hands first grabbed her and turned her back around to face him...and smashed his lips down onto her.

Despite the bruising force, there was a warmth that made her feel tender and safe, reassured, but it couldn't happen. Sakura managed to break it off and turned her face away, then her body, but that got her cream-colored layer off easily, and next to come as she made way for the outside of the so-called protective screen was the shirt - which ended up exposing her breasts which she had to turn away as quickly as she could.

But when they ended up on the floor, she felt the rest of her clothes torn from her body and had never felt so uncomfortable and ashamed. _This man must have forgotten his morals, if he ever had any!_

"STOP!"

The word hadn't awoken anyone, but she hissed it aloud in hopes of getting him to stop, and he did. He just stayed there, some feet away and holding the last of her wardrobe in his hands, breathing heavily and impatiently...but there was also a lost and confused aura now. She refused to let her guard down.

Sakura's long pink hair covered her in the back, but she had to bring both her legs over to hide that sacred, unspoken part as well as cover her naked breasts with both arms. "You...shouldn't...be here. I won't become your lover, Your Highness."

"I couldn't stop thinking about you," he rasped out, desperately. "I had to know if you felt the same way as I do."

She shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut. He was trying to tell her the depths of his heart, but it wouldn't work that way. The kind of love described in the great stories and poems was longed for but carried great risk, as did real life. It was exciting but also threatening. If she were to ever have a man, it had to be honorable.

Itachi was close behind her now, but he didn't touch her. "Your hair...it's enchanting. I detect roses and pears, but what else?"

He was trying to change the subject, but also trying to ease the constriction between them. "Don't change the topic, Your Highness."

"Itachi. Please, call me just Itachi."

"Itachi," she repeated, wishing she could shrink, "don't bother tormenting me now. I love your wife too much to betray her, and I can't forsake my honor by becoming your concubine. There is nothing gained out of it, except an uncertain future afterwards." Since saying those words made her regain some of her dignity back, she found the courage to open her eyes and look over her shoulder to meet with him.

"Please, understand: I want a solid marriage and nothing uncertain. I can't betray the princess just to satisfy you, my lord."

He now appeared to be more wounded than before, which was not something everyone in court saw everyday, but he wouldn't be the only one. In public, you always had to suppress your emotions. But here he was so vulnerable and lost...

"And cherry blossoms are in my scent," she told him, just to try and make him smile a little, though it didn't seem to work. He just nodded once.

"Forgive me, Sakura. I sometimes don't know myself as well as I thought I did. I used to hold back my feelings, but it seems I no longer can." He looked her square in the eyes. "You remember that day we met...at Sasuke's grave. I wasn't enraptured by you at first, but you intrigued me because I have never known a woman like you. There aren't any others like you, none who can stand out with your knowledge of herbs besides music..."

That was the first time a man - a real man - ever spoke to her like that and meant it, but why did it have to be like _this?_ He couldn't stay here, even though she wanted to talk to him more. She needed her clothes back, her pride back, and she needed her sleep.

"Just go...before someone sees you here. Go back to my lady."

Itachi backed away without a fight. She won the round, but there were many more to come, and she knew it. She just wished it wouldn't end badly, though it wasn't guaranteed. And if her mistress ever found out, there was no telling what their friendship and trust would become.

Before departing, the prince handed her the robes he forcibly removed from her, no longer looking at her, but off to the side which was where the doorway was. "...forgive me the next time we are alone."

**The fact is that despite the fact plum blossoms today are regarded (if not as highly) as favorably as cherry blossoms, they were planted near the so-called Demon's Gate mentioned in order to warn of dangers if you crossed it.**

**The song Sakura, Izumi and the blonde handmaiden (Ino, though not named) was "Plum Blossoms" by Derek and Brandon Fiechter. :'D Take a listen on YouTube!**

**I've also been...hesitant when bringing the moment between Itachi and Sakura to life. Like I said, it's hard to grasp in today's standards, but remember it was NORMAL in those days, and readers of Genji as well as viewers of the media versions called it romantic and a "gentle rape" at the same time. Though no sex has taken place between these two here, I promise you. (two fingers crossed)**

**Reviews are much loved in great detail - but NO flames. :O**


	4. It Happened One Night During Rain

**Yet another title comes from a TCM channel movie I hadn't seen, "It Happened One Night". **

**What transpires in here comes from episode 2 of "Genji Monogatari Sennenki" - between Genji and another lover, Lady Rokujo, who was one of the most intriguing women he'd known. The poems in here come from the episode, as well. **

Chapter Four

It Happened One Night During Rain

Sakura _rejected _him.

She pushed him away because she wanted a fruitful marriage and to NEVER betray Izumi. It was like her to be clean and decent, but as for him...why did he have to behave the way he did?! Why did he forsake his morals in his unleashed passion on that woman, and with desperate words?

He could never stop thinking about her now, because he couldn't ever think of a time when he never got something. But come to think of it, he always had things given to him without ever asking for them. This would have been the first time he made a true choice of his own will.

_Why am I intrigued by that girl? Perhaps it is because of the fact she is one link left to my brother, but it's never enough. _

When he left his wife's estate after the plum blossom entertainment, he hoped to busy himself with other matters besides her petal-haired maid. Anything to curb the desire in his body...and in his heart.

Word went around amongst the men of the court of a woman who possessed great wit and beauty as well as a masterful hand at poetry filled with longing and melancholy.

Her name was Lady Konan of the Nagato Palace. Now that he remembered her name, she was a widow of the late master of the house, and her compositions had been sorrowful only in the event of her husband's death. But other than that, she had no equal despite the fact her verses touched audiences' hearts.

It was also spoken that she seldom left home for anything. It was not uncommon for women to be separated by screens and wooden security. Though this one was apparently afraid to leave her home, having no other purpose since her husband passed on. Even that didn't dampen the fact the Imperial Court was fond of her.

"Her handwriting is masterfully on your level, Itachi. She's said to educate people on improvement in that field. I think maybe you might be a match for HER..."

Itachi was completely taken aback, knowing all of this as well as by Shisui's bold words. He had no need to learn anything new from this renowned, possibly stubborn woman. He never knew women to be like that, but he supposed there was a first time for everything. Not to mention, his cousin added that he attempted to meet the widow in person, only to be rejected on numerous occasions.

_Well, then, it's my turn to go out there and see for it myself. _

He had an idea, beginning with the excuse to continue learning to improve his handwriting despite the worthy praise it received, and when he visited his former professor in the field, he was given a magnificent example particularly with the spacing and all. Something that could rival the greatest of calligraphy: _the works of Lady Konan herself!_

She'd composed this particular verse at least two months ago in a competition, and it was no surprise that she bested. But other than poetry contests, the lady lived a life of isolation.

It was public knowledge that she had a young daughter and no male heirs.

On a windy night earlier in the following month - and to, once again, distract himself from thoughts of HER - he made the trip up to the Nagato Palace where its widow and owner resided. Never mind the hour was ungodly; he needed to alleviate as much turmoil as possible.

The woman was behind a screen, so he could not see her face, but a candle was lit on the other side so he could only see the outlines of her body, glimpsing a very dark-colored kimono with specks of red. And her hair..._blue._

First a woman with pink hair drew him, and now he was seeing someone with BLUE hair. And her voice was cool as the winds which harshly lapped at everything in its path, though beneath was curiosity tender as water.

"It's unorthodox to call upon a lady in the middle of a night like this when the winds are howling," the lady spoke, clearly having been busy before he arrived. "Just what exactly is the meaning of this...Prince Itachi?"

_The meaning of this is on a night like this when the moon isn't full but is high and bright enough, the winds blowing through the trees and the grasses...which compelled me to visit you tonight. _Bowing his head respectfully, he spoke these words in a softer voice than that of nature's present breath. Her posture seemed to stiffen.

"I was stricken with inspiration, and therefore, I came to you to compose. I never knew another poet to admire, my lady."

"...in that case, you can admire whomever you like, just as I may accept and refuse whomever I wish." Just as Shisui had said, and for a moment, he considered just leaving since he might get nowhere with this stubborn woman - but then his fortune changed at once. "But first, we'll see about that _tonight. _Let's make a deal: I instruct you this one night, and you leave."

He had anticipated that, and he swore if he wasn't worth her time, he would leave and never return.

If only he could see her eyes, so that he would know what she might be thinking of him, because her words only did so much.

"I accept your conditions."

~o~

No man ever came to her manor at an ungodly hour of the night, even if it weren't that late. Not even to request her tutelage; she had good reason to send away that Shisui Uchiha who had the gall to _flirt _with her besides asking for her mentoring skills.

Now this pampered Crown Prince was here in her home.

The wind on this night guided him to her, did it? Romantic phrases might work on paper, but very seldom did it have deeper meaning as time went on. Ever since her husband left her and their daughter Aoi alone, she resigned to having little to no male contact because no one could replace the love of her life...

...but now the Royal Prince had come to her humble abode. He knelt before her screen and was permitted no further. He showed he was more respectful than Konan gave him credit for, even swore on his word that he would leave her be if he wasn't worthy of her teaching. _It escapes me why he would come to me if he is the master everyone speaks of._

There was only one way to find out, and that was by using tonight. She began just as the winds slowed their whistling: _"The din of the thunderous gale, the luster of the brilliant moon..."_

_"...its voice muted in the pale moonlight, the wind is silenced," _he finished, breath a hush in the silence.

The raging river came to mind when she picked up for him. _"In a world without sound, the wind dances...and the water plays."_

His eyes seemed to sparkle in the moonlight. _"And in the stillness, I contemplate...as do you."_

Was it her imagination, or did this suddenly become a direct conversation between them? An unseen force was compelling her to reply back, but whether or not it was to him or a part of the verse, she no longer had an idea. It seemed he was trying to peer into her soul without going behind the curtain. _"On what do you dwell?" _she asked. _"An...unrequited past? A place you cannot return to?" Perhaps it is your brother whom you lost, and you are ever stuck in the times, or it could be a woman you cannot have..._

_"I have resigned it to a waking dream, like a snow flurry disappearing atop a mountain. I...reluctantly surrender what might have been and consign it to the connection of a past I cannot let go."_

His response confirmed her thoughts, even if he didn't say who the unfortunate lady was. _"Even if a man lives to see his thousandth year, he shall still lose his way," _Konan replied, and it seemed that they were drawing closer and closer together without him ever coming towards her on his own volition...

His eyes had deepened with his words. _"Were he to live ten thousand then, would he not be as lost as the young orphan?"_

_Time to ask him. "To speak of the orphan...what of your childhood?"_ She had to pick up her fan, opening it to show morning glory amid the sun.

_"Anguish, longing...passion."_ Ah, so it involved wanting more: what had been taken from him and what he had been given was never enough. Somehow, it reminded her too much of...

The prince was still speaking. _"My cheeks still flush thinking about the passion I cannot obtain. And of my past: how foolish to say that children are innocent and carefree!" _Konan hid the bottom half of her face so that he would not see her shock, but she allowed her question and statement in one to slip past her lips.

_"I have heard of more than one traumatic event in your childhood. A bud pricked by the cold and buffeted by the rain - only thus can the most beautiful flowers bloom." Because in this world, no flower becomes beautiful on its own accord. _

The stun was visible on his face, and it seemed the moon only shone brighter as if to serve as a beacon of hope. _"That is...precisely the kind of flower I love,"_ he rasped.

For the first time, Lady Konan paid attention to his face through the screen: it appeared as if he had stepped out of a _painting_. Never had she'd seen a face like that...

Now it seemed as if the invisible link had been established when neither of them played a part. He was a master at verse as much as she was, and it was clear there was an understanding between them. She wanted to know more, but the hour was getting late. She was so tired and needed her rest, so he had to go before something happened.

He appeared sad - and, dismayed, she felt so - but had to acquiesce. She watched him go without another word, closing her fan as soon as his silhouette vanished outside the door.

~o~

Before he left, she insisted he continue his studies, and she had his gratitude.

If he said so himself, Lady Konan's reputation was as it made her to be: humble and noble. But as Shisui said, strong-willed.

"Behind every word," he said to his companion as they continued to travel home, "there was a depth of meaning - both concise and elegant." _And she seemed to be willing to understand me...when Sakura wouldn't take any time to enjoy my company. _"Perhaps she is the embodiment of what is known as a lady versed in high culture."

However, there was something else: the grace of her movements behind the screen, her cool but delicate voice, and most of all was the glimpse of her beautiful blue hair in the moonlight. The last detail made Shisui sputter with laughter, since not many women in the land had colored hair besides dominating dark.

Itachi found himself troubled; how could you admire a woman like Konan as merely a tutor?

~o~

After he was gone, Lady Konan was at her palace getting a bath of the hottest water she would need, but she was frustrated while her maids were excitedly speaking of Prince Itachi whom they asked if she would see again in the future. She snapped at them for speaking of such tiresome things - and continued to ask for more hot water until she would burn.

Ducking under the water, she thought she would wash away the thoughts of that prince who came to her home.

_I heard he had been spoiled, fawned over...but I thought he was arrogant. _

She'd been proven wrong, and it irritated her to no end. She just wished her ladies wouldn't talk about putting such bothersome ideas into her head; the least she could do was burn her frustrations under the water, arms over her breasts and letting the rest of her float away without shame...she hadn't done this since her husband passed on...

She wouldn't be surprised that people would learn of his nightly visit, but pray that it wasn't anything of the romantic sort. She was his tutor and nothing else. Hopefully it would stay that way. The only thing that did comfort her was the fact that "Lady Konan of Nagato could not be swayed by the magnificent Prince Itachi Uchiha."

Or so she thought.

Days later, when they were supposed to meet for their session, one of the maids approached her while she was in the middle of a new verse - about this glorious man in her point of view - and that was when the wave hit her that it caused her hands to shake, the ink falling off the brush and hitting the paper she spent all afternoon on.

_He's not coming - because of unexpected official business. _

_Why are my hands shaking?_

_Why am I crying?_

_And why...why am I feeling such pain?_

Indeed, why was she experiencing such foolish emotions?!

~o~

He would eventually return the next few nights to come so that they continued their sessions, but it remained nothing short of master and pupil, despite their different statuses.

Of course he heard people talking, but it was as they said: just literature and poetry, nothing else. In fact, he doubted it would ever be anything beyond that...but he would unknowingly find out it was contrary. Especially when he went to visit his wife once again, sooner than last time, but not just for Izumi's company alone.

He truly had to talk to Sakura, to try to alleviate the tension from last time. That meant canceling his session with Konan, so he prayed she'd understand when she received the note of forgiveness...

...but he had no idea how mistaken he was.

Except, his mind changed when he recalled her words: _"I want a solid marriage and nothing uncertain. I can't betray the princess just to satisfy you, my lord."_

Which meant that he had to change course from Izumi's estate and head right to Konan's, no matter his letter sent. He would explain why he had been in such a heat of the moment, the best he could.

It was on this night that it began to rain, though it wasn't terrible. If it got worse, he and the entourage had no choice but to stay the night...if the lady didn't mind, that is.

Within his possession was what he meant to give to Konan, though what was inside had to do with the fact his thoughts were so scrambled he couldn't word them properly on paper. Mostly because of HER, but he had to think of anyone but the woman he knew he truly wanted...

Arriving at the mansion, he happened to walk past one of the windows himself - and that was when he was gifted with a sight he shouldn't have seen, unless it was _fate_ deeming it. There was the better view of the kimono hanging up now that he could see it: black as night, but bursting to passionate life with red blossoms, and would have been tied with the golden sash. Beyond it was none other than the lady herself, surrounded by a screen which consisted of the same bright blue which her hair was colored after, as well as green bamboo and pristine lotus blossoms. _To represent good luck, wealth, divinity..._

_...as well as being far from the one you love._

She was bathing, and the thought of water as well as the downpour made him think of rejuvenation amidst everything that was dark and gloomy. Depression with the hopes of renewal, and to see her like this made him feel that the desire within his being began to burn anew, making him forget - for the while - about a certain rosette who insisted on preserving herself for another man and also to secure her status with his mistress as the closest of friends they were...

_Skin clear as porcelain...hair blue as the water in paintings...and a breast partially shown to my eyes. _

Itachi had to move before he was spotted, so he met with the chief lady-in-waiting and insisted he saw her mistress no matter how late it was - and brought up the rainstorm that overtook them on their way home.

It didn't surprise him that Shisui was already making advances on the prettiest girls from the middle and lower classes he could get amongst Konan's staff. While that was happening, Lady Konan finally arrived, in what appeared to just be the black and red outer garment along with something lighter, but that didn't matter for his eyes. She had been rushed and taken by surprise altogether, which displeased her greatly. "I thought you'd sent word you would not attend today. You've taken me at an inopportune time."

"Yes, and I apologize, which I hope you accept. It was an urgent matter that required my attention," Itachi answered, bowing his head. "I thought it would take all night, but I was wrong. I should have considered you had other appointments to keep..."

"Indeed I do," Konan answered sharply, kneeling down on her side of the screen. "As you said, it is quite irregular to visit so suddenly." Her hair appeared to still be mostly wet, or just damp, which he had never seen before, and he thought it made her appear more endearing.

"I felt I had to see you whether it was too late or not. And it was not only because of this storm. It was this..."

And so he left it before her screen, after sliding a bit closer before pausing at a respectable distance. When she opened it, there was a tight expression, and now it softened to something akin to surprise. "My goodness, what is this supposed to be if there are no words?!"

He chuckled. "It is a...love letter to you. I tried to think of what to say, but my thoughts became too complicated to translate it onto parchment."

"...you flatter me."

Was that all it was? If you asked Itachi, there was more to it than that, and he could feel it. "Your beautiful voice, your pale and delicate fingers, your slender shoulders...and your lips. Everything about you, after all the time I have spent with you, has made me burn with desire..."

One more thing was in place, which no one knew but himself. He had done it for many days without ever telling anyone - even her - and now he would give it to her so that she would see what he saw in his dreams...but just as she touched the paper, he didn't stop there. Custom be damned; he HAD to see her now!

And when he took her hand, he threw aside the blasted obstacle between them, and the horror was on her face at his brazen actions which he no longer gave a damn about.

Her face...it was even more stunning than in his dreams. Just like an angel from the heavens...

And he could SMELL her, too: though still drenched in water, there was also the underline of lilies and perhaps other flowers difficult to name - just as she had been difficult to read through in the beginning.

Their first kiss they shared was searing and wet as the hottest spring. It was pure, magical and consuming. Nothing he ever knew in his life..._perhaps this is why men never get enough. _

It was then that, before they could continue, she breathily broke off the kiss and insisted he let her go so she could tell her maid she was going to retire early, and no one was to disturb her - and their guest, His Imperial Highness, who would be given his own guest room...and it would be with her, which she said to him as soon as they were alone again. That was his cue to act out again, taking her by surprise - but delightfully this time.

She was very similar yet different from Sakura, whose body he saw forcibly but memorized well - and whose breasts were smaller than this one's and Izumi's. _Konan's _curves were supple and carved from pure ice, breasts ripe and full like the moon - twins, in fact - just like his wife's. Accompanied with her lush azure hair, she was a living goddess beneath his own body. And he intended to worship every inch of her, the same way man and woman were created for.

His intentions were to make this unshakable, passionate woman feel something beyond anything she comprehended.

In the midst of their drowning coupling, at the back of his mind which would come later when this was over, Itachi began to feel the smallest ounce - the starting point - of guilt gnawing at his heart at the realizations which rose within like a fresh body of water born from the storm.

_I love Izumi, for she is my reason to be happy...but not like _this_. It is because of her handmaiden with pink hair who spurned me for reasons involving my wife and her virtue and honor - but this woman now in my arms completes me in a way I had been searching for. _

And it was because he couldn't have the woman he truly desired, out of a sense of respect.

**Notice how the love scenes aren't graphic compared to my usual style? It's because of the earlier facts I explained early on about the discussions of the naked bodies between man and woman. Thus this is purely romantic and not in a vulgar, pornographic manner.**

**Review! :3**


	5. The Passionate Ones

**Another brilliant version of "Genji Monogatari" is the 1951 film which stars Kazuo Hasegawa (who was a superstar back in the day) as Prince Genji, and was directed by Kôzaburô Yoshimura. The movie is on YouTube listed as "Kôzaburô Yoshimura - Genji monogatari 1951 VOS". :D Enjoy if you wish to view it!**

**Chapter title another oldie from TCM channel. **

**I thought to repeat myself: much of the dialogue is from the 11-episode anime "Genji Monogatari Sennenki". :3**

Chapter Five

The Passionate Ones

Never in her life did she ever presume to think what transpired between her and Prince Itachi would be a reality in her wildest dreams - nor did she expect it to be on the same night he and his retinue took shelter at her mansion at the most unorthodox of times, but circumstances like this couldn't ever be helped.

Konan forsaked her pride only this once - or rather, for the second time - just to allow the prince whom she taught the last several nights to rest here, and after she had her bath while her daughter slept in her room. _Pray Aoi doesn't awake for something again. _

She supposed she could admit to herself she was glad it hadn't happened. Though she never counted on his declaration of LOVE for her when he gave her that letter without words he couldn't admit without making a mistake - she couldn't remember a time _anyone _meant such a confession - and she'd mistaken it all for mere flattery after everything she taught him. _And all this time, I thought he needed nothing more when he is already...the equal I never thought was there. _

That meant not even her husband, the man she'd loved and father of her child, had ever done that, much less engage though encouraged her.

A part of her wondered if Itachi was still pining for that one woman he never spoke of - the one who wasn't even his wife - despite his words of "resigning it to a waking dream". It seemed his actions tonight proved it.

Konan shamed the unknown woman who turned this glorious man down.

He did things to her that she never imagined to ask for, something that was spoken subtly about in poetry and love stories. When this was over, she was considering dropping hints of this in her next inspired work. And she'd NEVER been touched the way he did to her breasts and other parts of her body with his lips and his hands, every inch worshipped as though she were a goddess and he was her devout follower...and it prompted some of her barriers to start falling so that soft tears coursed down her cheeks, which she had to wipe off before he took note of. Some of her pride remained for that.

The night was deep when they were eventually sitting upright in the place where they'd made love, the screen toppled to the ground and no longer an obstacle for them. All sense of propriety vanquished between them once and for all, now that she was brave to say it.

It was at this moment the rain had stopped, but who knew when it would begin again. You could smell the freshness that would become morning dew when the sun rose for a new day.

"What a...strange thing love is," Konan murmured against her lover's porcelain, powerful shoulder, drawing the outer layer of her kimono up to cover her before him. "Until a short while ago, we were each walking down our own separate paths..." _And yet here we are: in each other's arms, together and whispering into one another's ears. _

She wanted to do this _every _evening now, let the flood free from her eyes, just be who she really was with him. So, she tried to relay that message to him when she turned into him and slithered her body up to his, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, and pressed her nose into his. All those separate paths they'd walked down, each step taken...brought them together.

It felt like _destiny._

However, for the entire night and well into the dawn breaking, while he only smiled at her and leaned into her caresses of his warrior's body and combing of his glorious hair with her fingers, she never got one word out of him.

Just when she thought he would never speak to her, she found herself laying on her back, some of her hair falling over her breasts, and Itachi was leaning in, breathing against her lips. Her hands caressed the firm lines of his back.

"It may be so." Konan arched her head back when he traveled down her body again, continuing with his meaningful seduction. "Don't forget to fix the iron and shackles. If you don't, I just might run riotous..."

Didn't anyone ever wish they could just lock themselves away from the world and be like THIS forever?

Unfortunately, she would learn there was indeed no such thing as forever, for when the sun rose, the maid came to her - not seeing her mistress in the state she was in due to the screen somehow being put back up - and knelt but turned her face away as if _knowing_ what was there. This made the lady suddenly very angry when she sat up and pulled her kimono layers close to her naked body.

"Prince Itachi has suddenly departed, my lady. He said his attendance was required at the Imperial Court today. And he apologizes for leaving without telling himself."

Konan's thread snapped. "When will he be back?" she demanded, pulling the cloak around herself and tying it in place, ignoring how she must appear; she was ready to curse if she got no answer, but she calmed down when the maid told her it would be tonight, as usual.

She thanked the woman, then insisted she leave and wait for her until she returned to bathe. _If he's coming back tonight, that means I shall only have to endure these feelings of loneliness until evening. I can wait that long..._

But if she could endure until then...how would it explain what was now happening to her? Especially whenever he was not here? When she felt her heart growing restless in its beating every time she thought of him, and her body parched as if thirsty when water and sake only did so much?

Last night with their bodies joined together for the first time would make her into a different person than she knew herself as, and she was certain that nothing would ever be as it was again...

...but the fact he was still married bothered her immensely. Why did she not understand how these things worked when she herself once had a husband?

~o~

He could never stop thinking about the goddess he linked with like the red thread of fate the previous night. His heart was beating immensely before, but now it was calming down with each breath he took.

_Her sculpted body of ivory lacquer feeling like the softest silk..._

_Her breasts full as the moon..._

_Her hair blue as the darkest waters..._

_...her eyes warm as fire._

She was cultured and beautiful in one, the ideal woman that no other man would be able to keep up with. She seemed to know what he was thinking without him talking, as if she were using her eyes to see into his heart; she wouldn't speak with her tongue, but she seemed to _know_. Fulfilling every desire he wanted to give...

But he loathed leaving her before she woke, and the sight of her made him not want to disturb her slumber since she looked so tranquil. _No doubt expecting me to be beside her and then wish me off. Only Grandfather expects my return and no later than today._

Not only that, but as he, Shisui and the others journeyed home, he found himself dwelling on this: every time he met with Konan, her kindness and attentions were gradually becoming..._stifling._

He saw it only the first morning after when she begged him to return the love she was certain she felt for him, craved the attention and wished it were them as man and wife. He was certain of that last part, at least, but it couldn't happen like that.

Shisui had to interrupt his musings by asking him what he wanted to do when they got home, and the young prince could only decide he needed a rest before he attended his duties.

~o~

What got around always came around: Crown Prince Itachi Uchiha frequenting Lady Konan's mansion in the past couple weeks.

Princess Izumi got the word back from Sakura who heard some of the servants speaking and got the information in return from visiting nobles outside the estate. She felt her hands shaking in midst of combing her hair that morning, staring at her own reflection in the mirror and listening to the imaginary gossip which replayed from her cherished chief handmaiden.

_"...who was it, I wonder, who claimed there was nothing _amorous_ going on? And that it was naught but a simple desire to study literature? I suppose we should have known: a young, handsome prince and an intelligent, beautiful and exceptional noble lady? When they started meeting that often, something was bound to happen..."_

_Something was bound to happen..._

And the fact it had to be the "worldly and talented Lady Konan" - the widow of a nobleman not too far away from the Imperial Court. The one whose poems Izumi admired like everyone else, but to think of her HUSBAND with the woman! And people going on about how Itachi _melted _her difficult heart...she couldn't bear to hear anymore.

"The rumor is that they are in love," Sakura spat when she was finished. "That your husband had no equal in love with you, my lady, but I call chopsticks on that!"

"I am indeed with you on that, Sakura," Aunt Kazue said, announcing herself and coming in to kneel beside her great-niece who hadn't moved a muscle while still trying to process everything...though inside, she was strangely unaffected after her heart somehow recovered since she was certain Itachi never meant to HURT her. They had history, after all, and knew each other well even if they never spent every living minute together. "My dear, the courtiers are talking about how they envy that husband of yours who managed to capture the heart of a woman like Konan of Nagato." Kazue huffed and reached to take the mother-of-pearl comb to run it through Izumi's hair and finish the job for her. She was relieved and relaxed.

She knew she did nothing to deserve this treatment, for she'd been schooled since early childhood that a man taking a mistress would happen sooner or later - or more than one mistress even - but she did her best to assure herself everything would be fine.

Even Kazue knew it just as well, assuring her gently with a hand on her shoulder. "There is a chance his little love affair could end in the future, and he'll come back to you, my child. You have so much to offer as much as SHE does," the woman said with a sniff. "Because you are his wife at the end of the day."

~o~

The word about his romance with Konan spread like a wildfire devastating the forest in a day or so.

When it got back to his grandfather who requested a private audience with him, Madara simply chuckled and stated, "I knew it would one day happen sooner or later, as everyone else - but never had I expected it would be with the cultured Lady Konan. Stubborn woman I couldn't achieve myself. However..." His lined and sagged face became hard to match his eyes and his tone.

"...I'm certain that wife of yours might be devastated after you've been faithful to her all this time, my boy."

_That is the reason for this guilt taking pieces of my heart. _

It was truly a...strange thing that love could do to you. No matter how many times one was in love, the reasons for the meetings and partings of lovers were a mystery that no man could ever fully grasp.

His relationship went on for some more weeks, well into the season which blossomed with more than cherry blossoms. Whenever he visited Konan's mansion, their lovemaking locations would go from her sanctuary behind the screen to the bathing area where they were surrounded by her bamboo and lotus scene...ending with their white _yukata_ thrown off their bodies and left to sink to the bottom of the small steaming pool so that they could see each other.

It was suggested once that they make wild, passionate love out in the light rain at night while exposed, but somehow, the notion never came to fruition...

...or it was because of the news that tragedy had struck at the home of the prince's wife.

At first, Itachi dreaded it had been Izumi, but it was someone else who was near and dear to her - and when he arrived, seeing his wife devastated and visibly showing tears down her perfect cheeks, smearing the powder, caused his heart and the other insides to roll over like the land in the event of an earthquake.

Her great-aunt Kazue had suddenly died from a failed heart, by the looks of it.

"My gods, what are you going to do when you get there, Your Highness?" Shisui asked as he hurried to keep up the pace on horse. Itachi only closed his eyes, lost in his thoughts before speaking them aloud.

_The funeral arrangements have to be made, but for the while on, I have to be there for Izumi, especially after what I have done to her..._

Itachi was out of the cart as soon as it came to a stop, and he went ahead without waiting for the others, rushing through opened corridor after opened corridor. When he arrived in the room where his in-law would sleep and have all her time alone, he was greeted with the sight that was the gathering of the household, the priest and his attendants saying the rites and blessing the dead - and finally Izumi holding the cold, dead hand of the body. Her head was bowed, but her body visibly trembled as she sobbed.

Sakura was right behind her mistress, hand on her back, but when she looked up at Itachi in the doorway, she pursed her lips and asked him to come in when no one bothered to greet him, not that he minded for once. He was here now, and that was all that mattered. Ignoring the rosette of his desires - still present even after spending time with Konan - he knelt on the other side beside Izumi and softly whispered he was here.

To look upon the peaceful face of Kazue made him fall inside. She'd been a good woman, but now she was gone. It was inevitable and natural, but at the same time, he wished it hadn't happened. He could only pray that she had peace in the next life.

He could feel Sakura's hard eyes on him, but he refused to look at her.

Despite his strong need, Itachi wished she would start showing respect. He could only take so much. If he didn't know any better, he'd say she was being this way to him because of last time they met - or rather, when _he _went to her. _I don't blame her, but she needs to understand I am true to my word, and I am here for my wife only._

When the day was over and everything was taken care of, the body to remain undisturbed until tomorrow morning for the services, he was finally alone with his wife in her chamber, with all the servants dismissed. Just the two of them.

"Izumi." He didn't know what to say to her, since he had no doubts she knew about his affair with the Nagato Palace widow. "I'm sorry."

"For...what?" she asked, and that was either two things or both: _the fact Kazue is dead? The liaison everyone speaks of?_

He answered without hesitation. "Both what I have done, and not being here before," Itachi stated, and in this time, he was sitting across from her as the small black table covered with steaming tea separated them. He had no right to touch her yet, not until everything was settled. "I should shame myself for betraying you. You must not have wanted to show your face in public. Even Sakura cannot bear looking at me..."

She had been staring down blankly at the glazed black surface of the table the entire time, but now she looked up at him, and her matching eyes were misted over as well as rimmed with puffy red from crying all day. But he saw no trace of heated hatred in her eyes, or anger and everything else.

There was nothing but pain and confusion, as well as longing.

"I tolerated it because it was my duty as your wife, and knowing I would still be here if you stopped seeing her. And the fact you come when my great-aunt dies...what do you expect me to say?"

He turned his eyes to the side, staring at the lamp which was still flickering. "I don't expect you to say anything. But I wish to...make peace and stand by your side, make up for everything unless you forbid it."

He meant everything as always, but that meant breaking his promise to Konan. The passionate one who woke something deep within himself, but now he was uncertain because here he was now...

_I just pray that things can resolve after this, if I can explain to her in the future when I see her again._

As always, his wife managed to smile and forgive him...and accepted his invitation to bed that same night. No matter the rumors regarding him and Lady Konan still spreading throughout the court.

She was so beautiful, just like a magnolia - and her breasts full but nothing different to expect, otherwise comforting - or a lotus blossom amongst water, especially the ones in small fountains. Because that was what she was named for, which attributed to her serenity and generous heart: just pure and simple but could be deeper than imagined. She welcomed him because she understood everything about him, let him do what he wanted...and she wasn't smothering like Konan.

Though he found an equal in the blue-haired woman, he realized that he let his desires get the better of him as he joined with the woman he was spending the rest of his life with. Pledged to him since coming of age by his grandfather and her great-aunt, now dead. It took the latter's loss to bring them back together.

Itachi wasn't yet aware of it, but as he comforted his grieving wife who needed him more than ever, his heart began to drift from Konan.

~o~

Itachi's visits began to be very...seldom as of late. After he promised he would see her every night when he wasn't called away immediately.

Hearing the maids talking about it made her mood worse than ever before. Only it wasn't entirely what she thought it was, when she assumed he found _another woman_ \- no, he had gone back to the mansion of his wife, Princess Izumi, because her great-aunt had died of a heart attack. He had been there ever since, no doubt nursing his wife who was mourning the loss of the woman who raised her ever since the death of her parents.

_Nursing his wife...that can mean one of many things. _

Konan swore to herself and then demanded the maids to ready the bathwater, interrupting their gossip with her venomous glare and sending them off, gasping in horror that they had been heard. But despite the small fire burning in her core, she had to say these words to just get them to calm themselves down.

"It's only natural, ladies, that he would comfort his wife after the death of a loved one. She would do the same for him."

Add in the fact that she was a decade older than Itachi, while his wife was exactly the same age as him...and that meant _youth _had to be more appreciated. Beauty and youth combined made wonderful.

That in mind, Konan began to dwell morbidly on the possibility that she was _too old _for Itachi Uchiha after everything they had. Which would explain why he frequented her residence less and less...

~o~

Her husband slumbered while she lay awake, looking upon his face and smiling after what they'd done...and it proved how much they DID miss each other.

_Itachi...you were wonderful. _

Never did she think he would end up being more...passionate than she remembered. The way he kissed her body down, squeezed and lapped his tongue and lips over her breasts and everything - he must have learned it while with that woman, but she decided it didn't change anything. The effects mattered most, and life was about learning this and that.

Izumi almost felt a little better after the death of her great-aunt, though the grief was still there. Kazue raised her from girlhood, was there when she got her education and eventually married, though death had to come eventually. Such was the way of things. With time, she would heal from the wounds as long as her husband and the others were here. And Sakura when she wasn't speaking ill about Itachi, which was enough for Izumi to put her in her place before she joined her husband that evening.

"Sakura, I understand your concerns, and that it has to do with Lady Konan, but he is _here_. That's how things are in the world whether we want it or not; Itachi is a good man no matter what he does. I know him better than even YOU do."

That seemed to shock the pink-haired woman who begrudgingly accepted her words. Somehow, Izumi suspected there was more to this dislike than the girl let on. With his affair with the widow of the Nagato Palace, what if he tried coming onto her lady-in-waiting and failed?

Part of Izumi didn't know how to take that if it went too far. And tonight, she wanted to sleep, but found she couldn't.

The twinkling yellow lights outside were the reason. _The fireflies have come out. _

It took her back to the memories of her and Itachi going out there, by the streams when the fireflies were in flight. And afterwards back to the bedroom, but tonight, she laid beside him and watched the flies pass by the window...

"They're beautiful," Itachi's voice whispered to her, informing her he'd awoken on his own and came to lie so the front of his body was pressed against her back. "And I did not think I would see them tonight. The timing couldn't be more perfect." He pressed a kiss to her shoulder, making her sigh and lean into him. One of his hard thighs came and wrapped around her waist.

_I feel so terribly happy I can hardly bear it. If I could die happy, this would be the way...in this god's arms. _

But then he would be all alone, having added another personal loss to his heart. So, she was going to just live happily with him even if their lives were far from perfect. No matter how far he traveled, she would wait for him.

"Izumi...I think I can finally be truly happy with you. I can finally begin to truly be at ease. You might be the one soul mate I searched long and hard for."

His passionate words made her cry and turn into him, burying her face into his chest, and bringing a hand to trace the hard lines. _Forever should exist if we can make it._

~o~

_Itachi...where are you?_

But the answer was before her as she sat in front of the mirror...and with _incense_ lit up in the extravagant urn that had been a wedding gift. She busied herself with caring for her appearance that evening, thinking that if it were urgent matters, it was all right.

Except when it came to his wife, that genteel spirit who made Konan envious more than ever.

She picked up the jar that had her favorite fragrance, which was now part of all those nights they'd spent together. _You always loved my scent, said I was fresh as the rain and the flowers it drenched. _

The tears poured down her cheeks. She missed him so much it HURT. HER. HEART! Because at the moment, he was in the embrace of his lawful wife, no doubt whispering words of love he should have given to _Konan _alone. Her logical mind warned her to not cry over such things...

She had no choice but to wait and be strong. The time would come one way or another when he would find his way back into her arms.

**Doing this chapter really made me cry like a fool. :') I don't even know what to say at this point. Feedback please! **


	6. The Fury of a Maddened Soul

Chapter Six

The Fury of a Maddened Soul

He had never been so happy as he was now.

It was actually more than just the completion he'd found in the arms of another woman who wasn't his Izumi, but it was exactly what he told her it was: _I may have found my soul mate after all this time. Why did I not realize it before?_

He awoke with her and saw the fireflies out the window, dancing like vivid yellow stars that didn't belong in the sky. _Those times we sat out there, when the moon was at its highest point, and we would be unable to count the fireflies as they would get away. _He smiled and drew her close to him, staying like that until they were both drifting off back into the sea of black nothing...

...but something shone on his face and made him flinch, waking up on alert. It appeared to be a lantern shining through the gauze curtains that shielded him and his sleeping wife from the world. Their private little universe was interrupted because _someone was here..._

"Who goes there?!" Itachi demanded, reaching for his sword that he kept near his head, drawing the gold-accented, ebony hilt forth with the pure moonlit steel. He raised it at the intruder which somewhat made itself known - but all he got was a pair of glowing yellow eyes filled with raging fire, and the rest was darkness as well as slivers of _blue. _

_This person looks so familiar - damn it! _

The figure was gone before he could finish his thoughts, but he was up in a flash, grabbing his white robe and pulling it around himself as fast as he could, then was off and out of the room in a flash, rushing in the direction the unknown intruder had gone.

He ran past two corridors, seeing nothing and was on the verge of losing his patience - and his body breaking out into sweat with the "exercise" - with his sword unsheathed, but came to an abrupt stop when he finally found himself face to face with the home invader...and felt as if the breath had been knocked out of his lungs.

Demonic yellow eyes beneath thickly slanted dark eyebrows glared viciously but calmly back at him, speaking in a voice that sounded familiar with a darker echo.

_**"The water shines in its purity...but darkness befalling is inevitable."**_

_Water...what exactly does it mean?!_

Growling, Itachi drew his katana back and slashed forward, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Hell take you, evil spirit!"

But when he landed back on both feet, the specter was gone. Damn it, where did it go?! _And more importantly, WHO was it?!_

Regardless, Itachi ran about and then back to Izumi's room, where she was getting up now and had pulled her _yukata_ back over herself, at the same time there were more footsteps as well as shouting.

"What is it, Your Highness?!" Shisui exclaimed, katana also unsheathed and ready to cut down someone who didn't belong in this house.

"What's going on?" Sakura demanded, halting right behind him.

By the time everyone assembled and he barked orders to search the house for a _spirit_, Izumi slid closer to him with a hand over her heart, frightened and needing his protection. He would gladly do it. "A...spirit," she whispered. "Someone dead that we don't know?"

Itachi nodded. "Very likely, and I doubt it was Aunt Kazue." _Because who attacked with a vengeance like that? _

Either way, as long as he was here, he would ensure they had all the protection they could get, issue prayers to the Buddha to watch over them. And when he returned to the Imperial Palace, Izumi and her attendants were all going with him...if she was the target for this specter's malicious means.

~o~

_Someone was here to try and kill me._

Never did she think the time would come, but how often did you hear an important person being endangered the way she had been? Even the presence of the priests who were setting up the rites as often as they would only did so much, and Sakura sat with her in the cart which was carried right behind Itachi's entourage as they made way for the capital.

Her husband was vehement on the fact that she be with him, under his and his grandfather's protection until this matter was resolved. She should be irritated, but she agreed with him. She didn't feel safe at her own home anymore now that her great-aunt was gone, but at least people were around her.

"I don't see why anyone would have ill will towards you, my lady," Sakura said, waving herself with the fan painted with bamboo and the blossoms of her name, against stark white watered with light blue. "You gave no one a reason to hate you..." She halted then, frowning and her brows forming a single line. "Or it could be someone who hates you because of your husband."

Ironically, the rain was pouring, but lightly and with minimal clouds in the sky while the sun was shining. She had the window cracked just to smell the aroma which lifted the spirits. But spring beauty was short-lived and did little to ease the inward rolling of her stomach. She would need Sakura's herbs when they settled in.

_Someone who hates me because of Itachi...is this someone who is _obsessed _ with him?!_

To say the person's name would be wild without solid proof.

Emperor Madara was generous to allow her to live here until the matter of the "spirit" was resolved, and was also kind to allow the funeral arrangements to be made. "I'm offering my condolences for your loss. Kazue was a good woman - a rare sparkling matter in the earth." He chuckled before becoming somber. "But these words about a spirit coming to your home during the night troubles me immensely."

Itachi nodded and bowed his head. "Grandfather, I tried to cut down the intruder before I knew what it _was_."

"Indeed. Nevertheless, this calls for an investigation on my order." At least something was being done about this.

However, as she settled into her personal room - which was once the emperor's late wife's, then the late Crown Prince Fugaku's wife's before her death - Izumi found that even Sakura's personal herbs only worked temporarily, and she was wracked with her skin burning as well as the sporadic chills in her own body that she feared she was going to die from it all.

"My lady, I am going to ask for the palace physician," Sakura then declared with a harsh nod, closing the small jars with the herbs and liquids on her personal tray. "Hopefully he has the answer."

She lay back, taking a few shallow breaths and feeling her stomach ease a little, though it would always be short-lived. Izumi hated this very much, wished life could go back to the way it was, but the doctor's diagnosis came first.

Itachi knelt beside her, holding her hand, when they were given the result that shocked them both but didn't surprise at the same time: it wasn't a normal fever, but an illness of body and mind..._the curse of a vengeful spirit. _

So, it WAS true: someone was truly here, but not of the world. Someone they didn't know existed, which made everything all the more frightening. Izumi mustered the strength to turn her body halfway to her husband who brought his other hand to rest tenderly on her shoulder, shushing her softly before demanding if there was a way to find out who this ghost was...only to be disappointed with the answer: "It is said the evil spirit left the scent of incense in its wake. Unfortunately, it will be difficult and shall take time to trace whose it is, Your Highness."

Itachi's face was a mask of taut anger, lips twitching and fighting to not pull back. Sakura was no doubt seething inside as she was out. But Izumi had to try to keep faith it would be resolved, though there was nothing more anyone hated and had no choice but to live with was the fear of the unknown.

~o~

Her poor mistress was suffering for something Sakura was sure had NOT been her fault.

Izumi was unable to physically attend her great-aunt's services, but she did say her prayers in bed while fighting to recover from the sickness plaguing her. Meanwhile, Sakura took to helping the doctor in order to help the woman get well again, except she was sure the "sickness of the soul" meant more than standard medicines; she referred to the Buddhist priests and worshippers doing their jobs in banishing evil spirits at all times.

In the next several days, the princess received several gifts from the nobles, as well as condolences for the loss of her guardian. Though while Izumi managed a weak smile, it didn't appear she was all that interested in her state.

_Not even at the lapis-lazuli pot from the Oosutsuki, atop a stand which is a wooden carving of a white dragon deity. _An incense burner and herbs from the East were also among, the latter being courtesy of Emperor Madara.

She even received a dagger which was inlaid with pearl; the sight of it raptured something within Sakura and made her wish she could wield it herself, at least while her mistress was taken sick. There was no doubt it was gifted as means to fight off against any demon or wicked spirit to come her way again.

This beautiful weapon was from _Prince Itachi - her husband._

Sakura decided she would let him off easy for this now, because she could see that he was now more in love with his wife than ever - all the more reason the rosette knew she couldn't resent him for what he almost did last time they were alone. What happened was in the past. He was a good man in the end, and this presentation of protection for his wife was proof of that.

How often did men do this for their wives?

Except, deep down...Sakura wondered if her heart was as closed off as she believed it was, and if Itachi intended to steer clear from her, too, given they would often be in each other's company now that Izumi, herself and the others would be here until they found out who intended to harm her mistress.

_He has deep feelings that he made loud and clear that night. He meant every one of them. He listened to my wishes. He would have forced himself onto me...but it never happened. _

Izumi's words were clear as spring water: _"That's how things are in the world whether we want it or not; Itachi is a good man no matter what he does. I know him better than even YOU do."_

Sakura closed her eyes as she set about working on the next dose of medicine for her lady. Safely away from the scrutinizing eyes of the handmaidens beneath her; as far as they were concerned, she was too young to be in favor, though she worked hard to get to this spot, and they also knew that.

It would take much longer than some days when, before summer began, Izumi finally began to return to good health much to everyone's - mostly her and Prince Itachi - relief.

When all was well, husband and wife set about to the northern mountains of Konoha to visit a temple and pray there. All of them knelt before a great fire which was hung above with sealing papers to keep out the evil souls who meant to do harm to the living. _Even demons in these mountains. _

When the services were over, it appeared to make the royal couple feel better. Sakura heard the priest tell them to remain for a while and to pray every day if they wanted things to improve. Even Shisui agreed on that.

However, there was a moment after they left the temple and made way to the quarters where they would all stay...and Itachi's dark eyes turned to finally lock with hers, his lips turning upwards slightly - exactly the same way as the day he thanked her following learning that Izumi had recovered.

_"Thank you for helping my wife, as always. I am forever in your debt. She is the kindest woman I have known...and while you, too, are kind, you know things that few other women do. That is what makes you a savior."_

He called her a _savior_ when she didn't completely heal his wife, and he knew that, but he spoke the words anyway, all with that soft...

Why did his smile have to make her heart flutter like a butterfly against her will like that?

~o~

Summer was brutal, with three weeks of rain altogether. That meant lighter wear for all, if otherwise ever exquisite, plenty of water and the likes - but it also meant fireworks and gardens to behold.

When they returned to the capital, it was back to work.

And summer poetry contests were the highlight at every evening when the fireworks would be for the eyes. He looked forward to that as well as the visits to the temples to give thanks to the gods for a future harvest afterwards as well as all the fun they could have in the season while it lasted - despite the blazing sun beating over them.

But in the season would also be not only his birthday which came and went - and that was when he gave everyone a dance which was nothing they were not familiar with, but were impressed as always, with his arms outstretched and his cherished fan in play to make his wife smile - but there would be something which sometimes had him back to where he started in the next month to follow, when the temperatures were at their highest.

Today was Sasuke's birthday, and that was the best time for him to visit bi-annually his brother's resting place, which was before the tombs of their parents. He had the season's flowers gathered to be placed at their spots - irises, hydrangeas and sunflowers mainly - and that was when he saw _her_ standing over there and alone, also with pink roses. _For trust, happiness and confidence. _

"It's great fortune to see we are here to pay our respects to him," Itachi breathed, standing beside her but a safe few feet away. "It comforts me to know I am not alone when I keep his memory alive this way."

Sakura looked at him from the corner of her eye. "I do just that, but I also know that I should never let myself mourn him forever. He wouldn't want that, and nor would others whose loved ones still pay tribute. They go on with their lives, as we all should," she stated, kneeling down and placing the bouquet before the epitaph.

"Itachi...I've made peace a long time ago. You should start doing the same, or else living in the past will spell more trouble."

He had to leave now before he said something he was sure to regret. But as he left her there, he could feel her eyes, broad as the grasslands surrounding them, burning holes into his shoulders. All the while, his heart and mind were connected but jumbled at the same time.

_She's right; it's time to let go of the past. I couldn't protect my brother, because there WAS nothing I could do. He is in a better place than this, and I know I'll see him again. _

_I'm going to continue keeping my heart locked from _her_, for my sake, hers and Izumi's. _

Itachi halted his thoughts then and there, grimacing and clutching onto a post attached to the bridge he was about to cross. Damn it all, it was impossible! He was standing there with her, and he thought it would be easy to just...

He couldn't even repeat that night by speaking the words held deep in his own heart!

**In episode four of "Genji Monogatari Sennenki", Genji fell into a depression because of Yuugao's death, and he received gifts (such as the ones mentioned in here), but one from Fujitsubo made his heart aflutter...another step with disastrous consequences. **

**In the Japanese language of flowers (hanakotoba) are the following: **

**1: Hydrangea - "pride"**

**2: Iris - "good news; glad tidings; loyalty"**

**3: Sunflower - "passionate love; respect; radiance"**

**4: Pink rose - "trust; confidence; happiness"**

**It's difficult to have Itachi and Sakura have casual conversation without returning to that awkward night, because it IS clear they are still attracted to each other. Why is it so hard to be so near and far away?!**

**R and R!**


	7. Misty Moon and a Bundle of Joy

**Minor spoiler: Ino (the blonde handmaiden from ch.3 who played the plum blossom song with Sakura and Izumi) is finally named in here in case no one figured it out. :D **

**We haven't once had a moment between the two girls in here, so here we are, and about time. **

**This chapter was harder than its predecessors, and I have a feeling that by the time I am done (halfway done by the feeling), the rest of the story will also get harder, but always worth it!**

**Also, I miss reviews from everyone. R and R when you're done reading! :3**

Chapter Seven

Misty Moon and a Bundle of Joy

That night was a fierce thunder and rainstorm in one.

She left summer blossoms along with pink roses at Sasuke's epitaph, and there his brother was to do the same. Finally did they talk and she gave him a piece of her mind.

"What did His Royal Highness need of you now?" Ino, her blonde inferior but greatest friend since girlhood, asked her as she was making way for the chief lady-in-waiting's private room after making sure the princess was well. The air was humid and moist that they had to fan themselves. "I was considering we both compose a verse about his and mistress' newfound connection since her life was endangered and her great-aunt dying."

A song would just make the prince return his attentions back to HER again, or so she thought. "I'd rather not speak of him," Sakura said, closing the fan and pushing aside the screen to go in, her friend following.

Ino nodded, sitting across from her so they were eye to eye. Her expression was hard. "You never once told me anything about him, but I can see it all as your dear friend: you turned him down when he tried to get you to be his mistress, perhaps before that Konan woman." That was Ino to be blunt sometimes, but often was she subdued and had to be careful lest she invoked an important man or woman's wrath.

"...you're right. That's exactly what happened," the rosette answered. "And you'd think he'd come against my will. But thank the gods no one is speaking about it openly - or have you heard anyone behind my back?" She was referring to the other older and younger girls, of course.

And as she guessed from the back of her mind, no one breathed a word. But that meant nothing. "They're still waiting for me to lose my step and fall."

The blonde sniffed, picking up her flute she would leave with Sakura, choosing to play out of habit, but sometimes a good tune came out of something random. "They are, but they don't know you as well as I do, Sakura. But enough of them and please tell me your thoughts about Prince Itachi." Then blue eyes glinted. "It makes me happy that you resisted that man. I don't know if I could do that -" A blush on her cheeks began as pink and darkened to red with the last words. "- and I certainly know other women won't be able to."

Now...how do you talk about someone who was noble but desired YOU when you weren't his wife - who also happened to be someone you _served_ and who trusted you in return_?_

"I think he sees something in me just because I connect him to his brother. But that says he is somewhat still living in the past; recently, I insisted he start to let go so he can live in the present. I even HAD to tell him why it couldn't be between us..."

_Don't tell her about that night he removed your garments. A little secret won't hurt for once._

Ino was ashen when she was done speaking, then sputtered in hushed undertones in case they were being spied on. "My gods, you might have put him at a distance, which I am proud of you for...but something tells me it has only enflamed that want all the more. I heard some of the girls talk about how doing that makes the man desire you more. I loathe to say it, but the prince might only fight it off so much."

Sakura hitched a breath, and opening her fan did so much to calm her grating nerves. If that was true, that meant Itachi might respect her wishes, but he harbored his need for her and must be suffering for it - but if that were true, too, then she had to ask about his wife's well-being he oversaw. It _had _to be love, which was said to last longer than passionate need.

She tried so hard to convince herself he was over her after everything, that they were only acquaintances.

It would be two days later that she saw _IT_ when she was informed that the prince was stricken with a mild cold or something, since it didn't appear to be terribly contagious, but it called for her hands alone.

What she gave him from the palace grounds which wasn't rare like most worked wonders on him, and he was well again before the end of the month. When he took a sip of the fresh tea she brewed him, before all the watching ladies - some sneering and wishing for the Crown Prince to say something that would get them talking - he looked up at her and smiled, softly thanking her for saving him even if it weren't life-threatening.

"You're a blessing to us all, Sakura." Then his attention hardened when he looked upon the others who were blushing. "I hope the lot of you realize how lucky you are to have her help YOU as she does to me, my wife and many others."

The women seemed stunned that the object of their fantasies had spoken to them the way he did, and regarding the fact it involved _her_ whom they envied for no good reason. Sakura had to avoid looking at them again and returned her attention then on him when she took the teacup from his hands...and then she made the mistake of locking green eyes with his black ones.

The look in Itachi's orbs were the exact opposite of his promises, as Ino had said...and damn her heart as always against her strength!

~o~

The summer progressed well into dry, arid days as the final month began - and the news she received was the talk of the day when her daughter, her precious Aoi, came to her so they had mother and daughter time.

"Mother, have you heard the talk? They say that Princess Izumi is..."

Just when the winds outside couldn't blow any harder than they were tonight despite the humidity. And she had to deal with the fact the girl was too...young for such duties at the Dàshé Shrine in Ame, which was currently at peace and in need of a new high priestess since the previous died. Konan didn't want these responsibilities to befall on her child even though she believed Aoi could do this.

_And going to Ame means...leaving Konoha. _

Which meant leaving Prince Itachi, who was now expecting his first child and heir with his wife. Which was also why the widow and renowned poet lost motivation to call upon romance since he all but stopped calling upon her...not even to enjoy her company for the sake of it. She'd even ceased love stories altogether for fear of causing further pain to her heart.

She fell to her knees, picking up the mirror and scowling at the face which stared back at her. If only he could have told her himself he didn't wish to see her again, and THEN she would give up on him!

The incense she always used was a means to calm her down, but sometimes her frustration would be so great that she needed a drink of wine. This would be after Aoi was tucked in by her hand; it was getting difficult to keep her emotions from the young girl who knew how to sense her mother's unhappiness.

"The incense I requested the other day has yet to arrive," Konan snapped to the maid who came at her order. "Send another request at once!"

When the poor girl was gone, she was left alone to the poem of heartbreak which reflected her own broken...

_It's natural that Princess Izumi bear his child, for she is his wife. It was meant to happen. It's not for me to complain about, given I am a mother myself. _

_But Itachi...why won't you tell me yourself instead of leaving me like _this?!

Without that kind smile and passionate disposition, Lady Konan was losing her will to live.

~o~

Itachi was kneeling before the water pond of the palace, looking down at his reflection as he could hardly contain his internal happiness he never thought would come.

After four years, he and Izumi were finally going to have a child.

His grandfather who seldom displayed such merriment even said this: "For a man of my years to be granted a great-grandchild - it's truly a gift from Buddha!" _But would you live longer to see its birth...?_

Prayers were being said before the Buddha's statues as well as fires surrounded with paper tags etched with mantras - all for the safe delivery of the prince's child. And not only that, but there hadn't yet been anymore attempts on his wife, though she was not yet allowed to return to her residence but would instead remain in the Imperial Court until the delivery of her baby which was said to be due in the middle of next spring.

He could hear Sakura's music without words being played in the distance, as her means to celebrate her mistress' pregnancy - and it was the most beautiful song he ever heard. The sun played a part in the tune, along with the stream's carefree flow.

Eventually, there was a banquet at the Imperial Palace to celebrate the announcement of the princess' carrying of her first child. Lively and full of nobles from the Oosutsuki, Miyazaki and other families, there was never a dull moment - and Itachi found himself on the stage with four other young men, giving a dance that caused the men to have envy in their eyes, given they could never hope to master his grace and fluidity...

...and despite the knowledge that this was for his unborn heir, many noble women watched him from behind their respective screens. Only to admire and not have within their grasp.

On this night, the moon was misty and the air gentle for a change.

He and Izumi were on the porch outside their shared room, looking up at the beauty in the night sky when all settled down, but the smell of incense and lingering bonfire smoke was subtle and present. She leaned back, inhaling and sighing as well as breathing the new poem which carried her words up to that vivid circle far above their heads.

_"Not shining and yet not covered by cloud - on a summer night, the misty moon is beyond compare."_

To gaze upon her fair face reflected by the light of the moon, Itachi could have sworn he was put under a spell - HER spell. _And I feel like I am going away because of the excess of wine, not in the mood for anymore passion than there has been. _But it was not the kind of passion he referred to which made that child she was now carrying.

He reached out, placing his palm on the middle of her body, trying to imagine how she would look when the child would grow.

His action seemed to take her by surprise. Her hand came to rest over his, stemming a brief spark that didn't diminish nor grow into a flame.

_...I love her. I love her more than physical desire can bear. This means there is so much more than just unbearable fire that would go out when it ran its course. _

It also meant he had been so wrong to keep her at a distance for fear of his own sanity and soul...mostly his heart. She was here, they were finally having a child together, and she was protected in his arms. "This is all I ever needed," Izumi whispered, looking deep into his eyes with a brighter star twinkling in hers.

And for him, this was all he needed, too.

The Obon Festival - the event in which the dead and the ancestors were honored and remembered - came and went, and that was also a time for him and his grandfather to send prayers and leave gifts for their family in the afterlife...which did include him speaking to his dead brother with his heart: _there is a new happiness in my life that I wish you were here to see it, Sasuke. You and Mother and Father. _

His wife and Sakura were there to do the same to their dead loved ones, and it appeared Izumi had a brighter glow about her despite the fact Aunt Kazue wasn't here, either.

Life still had its way of playing a cruel hand in taking loved ones who deserved to share joys left to be experienced.

Summer eventually would give way to the autumn season, and in that time, his wife would experience morning sickness which often had him worried. After that, the real cravings for different foods would begin - and the outrageous things they would be which would make you laugh and sick at other times!

It was at this time of the month now that the moon would be full, at its highest...and yellow to the point of resembling the fields of gold in summertime, as well as the grasses in the harvest grounds. During that same day, the leaves would change into majestic colors of red, brown, orange and even yellow-gold. It would be here that the rain would falter and leave everything dry, which was a small relief.

During the night of the yellow-white moon, there was susuki grass on display as well as white sweets fashioned to look like the moon itself. And there was nothing Itachi loved more than sweets. So did the mother of his child as well as her cherished friend and lady-in-waiting.

~o~

She made her resolve to see Itachi herself whether it was against protocol or not. Before she left for Ame with her daughter - who was in the cart with her - she had to make closure once and for all.

_I can't keep living with these feelings, when he is far away from me now. He won't call on me, so I choose to go to him. _

Unfortunately, the carriage never reached its destination, as she could hear the commotion going on outside which frightened her daughter who held onto the maid. The shout back to those ruffians, whoever they were, came from her chief guard: "This carriage belongs to someone of high rank!"

"And just who...wait, I remember your face. You're with the Nagato Palace. In that case, your mistress must be inside." There was a scoff. "If Lady Konan should know, then the _mistress_ of Prince Itachi should obey and move aside!"

_Mistress..._

Her world began to whirl like chaos descending...and it collided just as the carriage found itself on the verge of tilting off its path to the side, because someone knocked into it on purpose, no matter who she was. She was the widow of a high-ranked nobleman, but these damned fools wouldn't care that a _young child_ was inside and with her mother!

But Konan's whirlwind mind was spinning: _I am over a decade older than he is, and I am his MISTRESS. _

_And I mean nothing in the end. I am nothing but a target for the other side to treat with scorn now that he is done with me..._

_If only we could be together FOREVER._

~o~

How DARE they treat Lady Konan with such violent disrespect?!

Her carriage was coming to the Imperial Palace, but no one would say why, and she never got to complete her journey before she was forced to stop - because someone viciously knocked the carriage over...with a little girl inside, it was eventually revealed. _Her daughter._

Itachi was calm outside, but inside, he was seething. He hadn't even seen her for months, only to eventually figure out on his own she intended to see him, but then a gang who supported him and his wife - _they are nothing more than lowlife thugs _\- prevented Konan from going further. He was sure that she would return to her residence as soon as the cart was repaired.

In the time being with his wife, he felt intense desire subsiding on its own, but that did not mean he didn't care for the blue-haired woman. The woman who lived a quiet life, hadn't appeared in court in months for even a poetry contest, was reduced to being shoved aside because of what she was now, and he was sure of that. For that, he was mostly to blame.

"I must go and apologize to her myself," he told Shisui that same night. "After all, she may appear to be full of confidence, but she is actually a very delicate and...sensitive woman."

~o~

"MY LADY!"

Despite the joyous occasion which was Princess Izumi happily preparing for the birth of her first child - _about damned time, too!_ \- Sakura and the other maids found themselves horrified at something you didn't see every day.

Izumi's eyes had gotten wide, she couldn't speak and only gasped in horror - before her entire body fell backwards...no, it was _thrown backwards_ where it knocked the scenic painting to the floor, and she just laid there, staring up at the ceiling with those eyes which were still broad as the full moon. She continued to gasp for air, and that was when it dawned on Sakura that it could be that THING which had pursued her at her mansion.

_That ghost..._

The princess was seriously ill, physically now - and that meant her unborn child could be at risk. Sakura hissed and swore to everyone else, even shocking the ones who sneered at her long enough, that the monks had to increase their prayers if they wanted this evil spirit to be exorcised from their lady.

Throughout the night and day, sutras and prayers were chanted as many expensive medicines were given on Emperor Madara's orders, and Sakura willingly helped the physician give them to Izumi.

Though, it appeared that even the herbs and powders were temporary, thus finalizing the opinion of the exorcist that it was indeed the mysterious spirit. All the while, Izumi continued to suffer and whimper, which grew to worry even her husband who often came by her side and demanded if there was something he could do.

Sadly, there was nothing.

It bothered Sakura greatly to see him troubled, when she would often go out to the gardens to get some greens to stir up her works even if it was futile, but something was better than just sitting by and allowing things to worsen. She heard that he could barely eat except once at night and drink mostly wine and sweets during the day, which was extremely unhealthy. Someone had to put him in his place, try to ease his worries.

"She'll be fine, Itachi." Though Sakura doubted her own words. After looking around to make sure no one was looking - or spying - she sat down on her knees beside him, looking out to the calm waters and the bridge above, as well as the colors of autumn, radiated by the sunlight surrounded by only a few clouds. _The least I can do is just console him - and myself. _

"...I wish I could believe it with all my heart. I don't wish to lose her the way I lost Mother, and then Sasuke. Because my mother..."

Sakura knew what he was going to say: his mother died after giving birth to his brother, so she understood. It wasn't uncommon for some mothers to...lose her life during or after childbirth. She didn't want the morbid subject to make her think the same would happen to Izumi, because it _shouldn't. _"If we just keep praying to the Buddha and hold onto each other, she and the child will both make it," she swore, feeling emboldened now, and he looked at her now with a smile as confident as she was now.

This time, his smile and his hand coming to hold onto hers, thanking her even, wasn't so bad for once. It was comforting.

The winter which came soon after was cold and wrought with the harshest blizzards to the softest of snowfalls. Many were confined to their homes and ventured out only in times of emergency. But when it would all be over, then first the cherry blossoms would be in bloom, and it was her favorite time of year. Standing beneath her favorite spots...

...but then sometimes, from a distance, she would see the prince standing across the bridge, watching her but not doing anything, and ever giving that warm smile as he liked what he saw. No traces of smolder present, either, but there was an underlying sadness. Because she was certain he still thought of this cherished season of their people a faraway memory because Sasuke died during their time. The flowers she was named for represented how short precious life was.

_That doesn't mean there is no fun to still be had. _

Dare she add that Itachi was sad because his dear Izumi couldn't be out of bed to come out here with him - or both him AND Sakura - to enjoy these sweet sights?

It was amazing how time flew by, and yet it didn't ever feel like it. During that entirety, Izumi's condition remained the same, and she was confined to bed much of the time. Sakura and Ino would be by her more than the other ladies, brushing her hair and doing most of the errands - even playing music for her - and Itachi would come to enjoy the show as well as spend time with his wife and talk about the five-petaled blossoms which didn't have a scent like the ume but were nonetheless radiant.

Now the season would pave way for its middle, when Princess Izumi would finally give birth...but then people began to talk more than ever. Sakura heard them as she would go about her business, gritting her teeth. Commonly was this: _"It seems the princess is possessed by a malign spirit - someone who is holding a grudge over her...someone like Lady Konan whom the prince hasn't called upon since learning of his wife's pregnancy."_

_Lady Konan...the legendary poet who was his mistress?!_

Why did it not surprise her in the slightest? If it were that woman, then the explanation had to be what the Buddhist monks called a "wandering spirit" or something. Where the spirit left the body temporarily to go about and inflict harm upon other people, or linger in places.

Now the fear began to claw at her heart; she couldn't even stop it - and later that day, the screams of her mistress reached her ears and the other ladies'. They gathered around her in a flurry in time to see her laying sprawled about, the pillow block out of its place, and her black eyes dilated as she wailed the great pain.

Someone shouted for Prince Itachi to be summoned at once, and even his grandfather managed to make it in time to witness the horror of the childbirth that had finally come...and there was no question the malicious spirit was present to take pleasure in her torment. Emperor Madara could be heard bellowing for more prayers and seals.

The water was brought in to cool the lady's brow, even allowed her to drink, but sometimes she nearly choked on it, and it appeared she threatened to tear her poor husband's hand off, which made Sakura laugh sometimes. At least there was only a _little _humor allowed.

By the time the first hour of the ox was at hand, the newborn's cries pierced the air and could have awoken the entirety of Konoha.

**Dàshé - "serpent; mythical eight-headed serpent"**

**Obon is a festival in Japan which honors the ancestors and the dead. Tokyo today celebrates it in July while the rest of the country does it in the middle of August, usually for three days. I couldn't find WHEN it originated, because the Heian period hasn't mentioned it anywhere, though the Edo period was known for it, and so I figured it might not hurt. :)**

**The "wandering spirit" is also called **_**Ikiryō**_**("living ghost"), and in "Genji Monogatari", Lady Rokujo becomes one due to her great pride and jealousy that she subconsciously killed Genji's wife Lady Aoi as well as attacked his true love Murasaki. It was also said that after her death in the Noh play adaptation of the story, when she died, she became a vengeful spirit (**_**onryō**_**) and haunted Murasaki. In modern times, this wandering condition could be termed as an "out of body experience". **

**The "hour of the ox" in Japan means between one and three AM.**

**Lovely reviews appreciated! :D**


	8. Transience of Life

**There was a reason I left the previous chapter ending as it was, and it was purposefully intentional. So here is more. **

**I also wanted to thank sahi . sony . 1 (spaces since this website treats such things as other webpages rather than a username) for the loving reviews, though I doubt I see Sakura with Madara in here. **

**Warning: character death in here, so be prepared to get tissue boxes and/or strong drinks for those who are legal age. **

Chapter Eight

Transience of Life

His wife had screamed that the pain of the exorcism was too great, and while he knew it would hurt, he was certain that there was no way the victim like herself would die from it...

...and that was when he looked into her eyes and _saw_ it. He heard himself gasp in shock when he looked at _golden eyes _rather than midnight ones - and woodland locks were replaced with twilight blue. The irises were glazed with tears of happiness and relief, no trace of any kind of pain.

The woman who wasn't his wife further shocked - no, _mortified _him - by taking his hand and putting it to her _exposed breast_ on the left, fondling it and telling him silently that she desperately needed his touch. But the feel of her skin repulsed him enough to jerk his hand away. _Who the...who the devil ARE you to...?!_

Itachi was certain he had seen _Konan_ based on those features, and squeezed his eyes shut, praying he was only imagining it...and when he did reopen them again, there was Izumi laying there and smiling through her pain, with her white robe in place. So, he had imagined his former mistress, after all.

In the end, the child was born safely.

It was a baby boy.

"Oh, Izumi!" Itachi couldn't resist taking his wife into his arms because of this blessing at both having an heir at last as well as making a greater bond. She leaned back into him, at the same time their son was cared for by his wet nurse - who happened to be Ino, the blonde woman who was Sakura's friend - and everyone was in awe of the loving moment between husband and wife. It felt more like a dream.

_My fears have been unfounded. My wife looks like she is getting well. _

In the days that passed, she was still resting, but only to regain her strength. Outside, the birds took flight and called out in a celebration of their own. On the fourth day, Itachi held his newborn son while the mother sat upright, looking at them with tired content. He was a lovely boy, bearing the dark hair and eyes of the family. "Thank you...for being by my side the entire time," Izumi breathed, looking upon their child with pride.

Itachi smiled at her, cradling the baby and then holding him out to give to her. "Sakura was right when she said we had to hold onto each other and pray. Thanks to her wisdom, you and this child are well."

She nodded, but then she winced and raised both hands to her chest, gingerly rubbing at her breasts, which stunned Itachi before she explained why. "Forgive me. My breasts are still...well, let's say the milk I can't give to my own son." She was disappointed that their boy had a wet nurse, but the law said loud and clear that the firstborn son should never be breastfed by his own mother - at least, that was what he heard.

When Izumi took their son in one arm, Itachi had to reach out and lay his hand above one of her breasts. Not to entice, but to console and to sympathize with her plight. Her free hand rested atop his.

"I have to return to the court to handle some affairs with the emperor. Get well soon...my love."

There, he finally called her his love without fear. He felt the tear leave the corner of his eye, and she noticed with the sparkle in her irises. She reached up and wiped that tear with the back of her finger before leaning up to kiss him there. Which was why it pained him to leave her even if his grandfather needed him to discuss the upcoming late season festival to honor the Oosutsuki clan and its joining with the Uchiha clan - but actually becoming its leader.

He was leaving the room, and that was when he came across Sakura kneeling to his right. Looking down at her, he smiled. "Sakura, thank you once more. Though, even if it's not my place to say...it should be you as my son's wet nurse." _Simply because you are my wife's cherished friend, thus mine. The closest person deserves the honor._

Her eyes widened, and her cheeks darkened to match her hair. "Y-Your - Itachi!" she exclaimed. "I wish I could, but I have my boundaries. I adore that child -" She beamed now before it was gone. "- though I have to let someone else have the luxury as I can't do everything myself."

Itachi had to nod, ashamed he had to even bring up such an intimate thing, and left her be, but not before apologizing to her for his straightforward suggestion. She accepted with a bow of the head.

In the past several months, he truly began to see the rosette as a confidante and chose to name her his son's guardian if anything were to happen to Izumi, and his wife heartily stated she had been thinking the same thing. But they had to keep it with each other as well as Ino the wet nurse instead of everyone else; even Madara agreed to take it to his grave.

Speaking of which, his grandfather announced that he wasted no time letting the news be broadcasted throughout the capital, and it was nothing short of a celebration. Which meant there was a parade in the street; there were spring flowers in bloom - such as pink moss splashing across the earth, the wisteria dripping with majestic blue-purple, and roses in every color - as well as the best wine of the season. Especially an archery contest which was normally reserved for the start of the new year.

Itachi had been the one to bring his newborn son with him, whom he and Izumi decided to name after his _brother_ \- _Sasuke _\- and hold him in his arms while holding the reins of his horse in the streets. There was not one face that wasn't awed. He heard all the congratulations even if all were jumbled together, and Shisui had to tell him that his younger brother would have been honored, and despite the fact it was impossible to determine how Sasuke would have been as an adult, it was better to assume he would have loved being an uncle despite their estrangement. _If only I could have restored it to the way it used to be._

But the present was much brighter than the past, and that meant he would be able to think about the future with a better perspective now with this great accomplishment in his arms. Dark eyes blinked and looked up at him, not yet smiling but was content to be here, which warmed him to his core.

Except when the celebrating was over, tragedy struck once again when he was sitting in the company of several of the emperor's trusted on his right, and he thought it was a nightmare that came when all wonderful things were brought to an end.

Shisui had rushed to them to pant it out, having been shrieked for by Izumi's maids, though the only relief was that Sasuke was fine, except...

His world came crashing down when his friend and guard told him and the other men what happened.

~o~

Princess Izumi had died soon after the celebration of her son came to an end. There was no understanding why, when she'd begun to recover; it was as if an invisible force had come to torment them...or perhaps it was what Sakura thought it was. But either way, her mistress and dearest friend had been taken too soon.

_For her to be a vessel for such a malign spirit...damn you, Lady Konan. And damn myself for not saying a word, even if it was pure speculation. _

There she was now, face peaceful in sleep which would forever be so, and she was robed in white which was for the dead, surrounded with white roses, daisies and fresh leaves. But the rosette, through her tears as she cradled the little boy, named Sasuke in honor of his uncle, wished that the woman would open her eyes to her own child she painfully gave birth to, to her loyal servants who were with her to the end - and to the husband who was disconsolate now.

The sun was shining, but the white clouds were darkened eventually with the smoke from the funeral pyre which burned. _The smoke which fills the heart with feelings too...deep for words. _

The chanting of the prayers was nothing but a mockery to everyone's ears, no matter helping the dead into the afterlife. These prayers had been lowered after Izumi gave birth, which the emperor himself felt guilty for. Madara wished that he hadn't so that the malicious spirit wouldn't have come for his granddaughter-in-law after she bore a healthy baby boy.

Prince Itachi showed signs of tight anger, as if loathing himself for not seeing this coming. _He blames himself. _Part of her agreed because of being with a woman like Konan who had great pride and...secret sensitivity. Sakura wouldn't be surprised that he didn't bother telling the woman anything, ignoring calling on her, which must have made her so desperate...

...but it did NOT excuse what she did to his wife and mother of his child - _my FRIEND. _

Spring would end after Princess Izumi's passing, which once more reminded all of the transience of life.

She was in black like everyone else, and now the pyre was finishing, which left people dispersing and the ashes to be taken to the Miyazaki grounds which was Izumi's family home - where her parents, great-aunt and other relatives were. She still had the sleeping baby in her arms, looking down at him and smiling when she saw his father in him, and for a moment, he really _did _look like his late uncle.

Sakura was honored that his father made her his guardian, and that was what she was going to do: she was going to protect this little boy of her...secret love and her best friend with her life.

She should be guilty about finally admitting it to herself, especially now that her mistress was gone. And she thought she had gotten rid of the feeling after suppressing it for so long. She thought they could be just friends, but now that Izumi was dead, the longing had come back on its own. It made Sakura feel ashamed, but she knew what she could do and pretend it wasn't there. And that was going up to him with his son in her embrace, only to flinch when she saw the _tears _visibly streaking his cheeks as he held his hands up in prayer, gazing up at the sky which was smoking a little with what was left of the funeral pyre.

"I wonder which one is Izumi's..."

His voice was strangled. And the sounds he made were suppressed and threatening to escape into blubbering sobs which was unlike him. So, Sakura acted on impulse and rushed to his side, keeping the baby in one arm and placing the other hand on his back, rubbing gently and slowing down the sobs a little. The breaths he took were proof that he was pleased she was here. That she wasn't abandoning him as he must have feared.

_I'm all too happy to do this now. You don't have any other close woman left - but I also have my reputation to look after besides you and your son._

~o~

_**You were the one who killed her. You begrudged her. You cursed her.**_

_No, I did NOT curse the Princess Izumi!_

That voice and that face haunted her ever since she learned of her former lover's wife's death days after birthing a healthy son, but the horror was evident instead of rejoice since it would mean she could have him again, but not like...

Something inside her had left her body without her knowledge, and it was here that she was taunted with the voice and the phantom face of her inner spirit which reflected the jealousy and desperation she had harbored: _**I only helped you exact your vengeance. **_

_I don't recall seeking your help. _Konan sneered and so drew her dagger from her late husband, which was etched with butterflies and bronze in the handle. If she could, she would cut down the monster in herself, even kill herself in penance for this.

_**Well, what karma you have: "I want to touch him. I want to hold him." While such thoughts existed in your mind, while your body longed for his touch, a sea of flames was blazing in the dark depths of your heart! How terrifying a scorned woman can be. How dismal her fate is...**_

It was as if the spoken flames were surrounding her at this very moment. They were getting hotter and hotter to the point of consuming her and taking her down to hell...

...before it was over.

Konan opened her eyes and found she was in her own study, the paper before her untouched, and she tasted blood which meant she'd bitten her own lip in her sleep. Hissing, she wiped it with the back of her hand.

That voice was her inner demon, and because of that, she secretly agreed that she "killed" her lover's wife and therefore deprived that baby of his mother. SHE was a mother herself, so why did all of it lead to this?!

_That voice is right: the longer I stay here, the worse. I remember the way he looked at me as I made him touch my breast in the form of his pregnant wife; he saw me looking so repulsive. _

_I have to leave now before he comes here and confronts me, if he finds out. Before anyone else learns it was MY spirit. _

She would not see Prince Itachi, but she would give him the letter and not wait up on his answer. She was leaving _tonight _if it was the last thing she'd do.

~o~

The season would pass on into the next, and every night, he would dream of HER: they would make love and just talk about this and that, with no rush to end anything...

...but then she would stand with a smile of content, pulling the white sheet over her beautiful body and get away from him without running. She was pulled from his arms against his pleas for her to stay so that their future together would begin.

After the burning of her body, the memorial rites lasted well into the start of summer. All went well with the services, but it did nothing to heal his shattered heart. It was the same feeling as when his mother died, then his brother later on.

Now he had a son, named after his brother, to care for. He was all he had left of Izumi, and so was Sakura who was now there for them both. Hence he wanted them both to remain at court rather than living far away from him, and his grandfather agreed with him wholeheartedly.

But after that, all Itachi was aware of was being in his rooms when he wasn't performing his duties that he miraculously managed while mourning his wife. What he did was what he would when he was grieving: wine and sweets in the day, then a whole meal at night. It made him ill if he had something sumptuous as part of his own every day life.

What added as well was what Shisui told him one day when he visited his prince: Lady Konan of Nagato's resolve to leave the capital so that she could be with her daughter who would become the new high priestess of Ame - but first, they would head to a town on the outskirts to purify herself for a year.

_She left when she heard about my wife. But she is leaving...why? Because of me?_

Itachi felt worse than ever before; he did this to her, but why would she leave him on basis of the letter which eventually arrived soon after Shisui left only to return and present it?

He read it aloud to Shisui alone: _"If I stay here any longer, not only will I suffer more than I have, I will eventually cause you more pain than you have now. I send my condolences about your wife, and being a mother myself, it pains me to know your son will grow up never knowing his mother, so I pray for the health and well-being of you both. I hope you one day find the happiness you were seeking while I try to stop loving you for both our sakes. My daughter needs me more than ever."_

Shisui clicked his tongue, shaking his head from his kneeling position. "Spurned woman wised up and decided what was in everyone's best interests, though at first, I'd been considering -" He halted himself there, looking his master in the eyes. "Actually, it's not my place to suggest such things."

Itachi knew what he was implying, since they knew each other well, and he already made his decision without this letter's influence. "Yes, I know, Shisui, and this is my answer: I refuse to indulge with another woman in the event of my wife's death. That was what led to certain problems."

Laying before him was the closed up fan Izumi gave him so long ago on the day he came of age, when his grandfather and her great-aunt arranged their betrothal. That reminder he would never get rid of, as it would change nothing. Not even ease his pain.

~o~

It was said that Prince Itachi was inconsolable after his wife's death, not that she didn't know that already, and there were whispers he didn't feel like living.

It was Sakura's job to keep him healthy, though after the funeral services were done and she was tired of him drinking wine and sweets, which was the unhealthiest thing you could do to your own body. That meant the palace doctor agreed with her.

Ino was with her that day, cradling the baby in her arm and pulling the front of her kimono back over her breast, when Sakura got certain items that had been left to her in her mistress' will. Izumi didn't even want to think about death when it came to expecting her child, though it was best to be prepared since death in childbirth was common for many women.

First was the comb from Izumi's mother - the inlay of precious pearl within carvings of butterflies and flora. And there was also the dagger which had been presented to her from her husband: mahogany wood also inlaid with pearl, and the blade straight. _Something beautiful but deadly. _

However, the damned weapon hadn't helped matters when its purpose of driving away the evil spirit failed. Which was exactly why she intended to return it to the one who gave it to her cherished mistress and friend. No one deserved it if it didn't get to be used.

But...the comb she would keep. And for that, as well as looking at the little boy who grunted and looked up at both his wet nurse and his caregiver, Sakura let herself shed a few tears in front of her only remaining real friend who joined her in.

**I get the feeling a few chapters are less, making this story ten or eleven chapters at least, but let's find out. Meanwhile, reviews appreciated as always. :'( **


	9. Under Dark Clouds of Rain and Snow

**Really took long enough to do this chapter. Besides its precision, there was enjoying the latest set of Shippuden in English: the LONG-AWAITED FINAL FIGHT BETWEEN NARUTO AND SASUKE. After the Fourth Great War comes to an end. Lots of tears in both sorrow and joy, as well as Sasuke coming to terms and facing punishment for his actions. **

**I also have a fun fact I should have mentioned from the beginning: this story as a whole was named after another well-known collection of Japanese stories, "Ugetsu: Tales of Moonlight and Rain". **

**Chapter titled after episode nine of "Sennenki".**

Chapter Nine

Under Dark Clouds of Rain and Snow

She heard that Itachi was going to be in a horse race with Shisui, his cousin and personal guard, so she found it in herself to go out there and watch. The day was the final of summer before the harvest would begin, and the weather would become drier if raining sometimes.

But what she saw shocked her utterly, yet didn't surprise her at the same time: Shisui had beaten his cousin, which was maybe the first time. She knew the man was older than the prince, had great training to be in the position he was in now, but because this was _Itachi Uchiha_, you'd think he never had a flaw or mistake to make...but she saw it for the first time.

_This just shows he is only a human being and not the god everyone thinks he is. _

_This is also because he is still grieving._

Four months had passed since Izumi died, but it wasn't like you got over loss that easily, and those few months counted. Sakura herself wasn't healed, either, but she was coping enough.

She watched the men get off their horses and go into the nearby shed to perhaps clean themselves off from the breakout after that exercise. So, she waited where she was behind one of the maple trees which was starting to turn into autumn color. Then she saw the men exit, and that was her cue to pick up her kimono and walk head on towards them, calling out to the man himself.

"Sakura...I never thought I'd see you here at a time like this," Itachi said with a smile as he looked down at her kneeling form. Shisui looked between them, smirking, and his eyes twinkling. "What can I do for you?"

She reached into the layers of her robes and pulled out the dagger in its hilt, holding it to him. "I came to return this back to you, Your Highness."

"Oh, Itachi, that's the gift you gave your wife!" Shisui said when he recognized it, whistling, but then his face fell when he saw the look on his master's face - and the way Itachi looked at her made her fall inside like some of the leaves around them.

"Sakura," he said softly, "why do you intend to return it when she had reason to leave it to you?"

She gritted her teeth when she answered him: "Because you gave it to her so that she could protect herself especially from that spirit - and as far as I am concerned, it failed her. I don't see any reason it would be any use to me, so it's fair I return it to the one who presented it to my lady."

Sakura lowered her eyes then and there, waiting for his response or at least to see his shadow loom over to grant her wish...but it wasn't to be. He did kneel before her, but wrapped both hands around hers and pushed the weapon back her way, befuddling and dismaying her. _Wh-what are you doing? I came here all the way to give this back to you!_

"Its purpose is not only to fight against unseen enemies, but also flesh and blood. Defend yourself as well as my son if you have to. That must have been why she gave it to you, Sakura..."

_It was destined to be passed on._

Her grip tightened and pulled it against her, fighting to keep the flood in when it was impossible. "I'm sorry." But she wasn't sure if she whispered it to him, his dead wife, or both.

~o~

They said that when you lived in a perfect world - in a dream - then eventually, all good things would have to come to an end, and that meant the cycle of pain and suffering would take place before it would revert back to something sweet and majestic.

_But how long would it be before things get better?_

_The world of man is ever fleeting. _

He'd first lost to Shisui - which was the first time in a long time. He knew why: part of him was dead ever since Izumi died...no, he was only half a man now. Sometimes, he didn't want to do anything anymore besides courtly duties. As of late, his world was mostly under the shadow of a dark cloud - like the ones which obscured the moon and the sun. _That which shines brilliantly eventually dims away - the world succumb to darkness._

But two beacons of light remained; if only he could know how to hold onto them when he lost most of everyone else: his son who was cared for well. And his guardian who approached him after his race with Shisui...with intent to return the mother-of-pearl dagger he gifted his late wife during her illness. Her claim: _"...so that she could protect herself especially from that spirit - and as far as I am concerned, it failed her. I don't see any reason it would be any use to me..." _As always, it was her to be humble and undeserving when it was otherwise with the latter. He knew Izumi WANTED her lady-in-waiting to have her treasures.

He made the mistake of touching her hands with his when he pushed the dagger back towards her, so that she would know that she could use it to defend herself, his son and anyone else.

The spark that he suppressed long ago returned with a vengeance, and he knew he had to act before something happened - or Shisui opening his mouth. Itachi cleared his throat.

"If that was all, then let's walk back to the palace, Sakura."

And when they got back, there was a hysteria about the palace. Itachi held his breath and braced himself for the worst as he hurried on, and it was then that the trio was approached by Ino the wet nurse, with baby Sasuke in her arms. She was the one to report to them what was the cause of the panic they were all returning to:

"The emperor has...taken ill! He is in critical condition!"

_Critical condition..._

How much more was his heart going to take?! His parents, his brother, then his wife...and now his grandfather.

Itachi shouted the word as he hurried through the corridor. He didn't stop until he reached the emperor's room - and that was when he saw the gathering of not only several nobleman on the other side of the screen, but the physician and his assistants were there, too. All faces were grim. But his attention focused on the one he came for, and he was allowed to kneel beside his grandfather who was now in a state he'd long since gone without seeing, since his father and mother had laid dying.

"Your Highness," Ino told him, holding the baby out to Itachi, "please take your son with you." He was all too happy to do so and now knelt beside Madara who looked up at him with tired eyes. Now he looked much more ancient than the young prince remembered.

His voice was much harsher than he recalled before. "Do not fear, Itachi - I am at peace now that you...and your son are here," the old emperor rasped, feebly smiling and one lid drooping. "I have relished the company of the child I never thought I would live to see. He is a blessing to me as he is to you...if at the cost of his own mother." Madara's face fell further when he thought of Izumi whom he cherished like she was truly part of his family, and it made Itachi do the same. "However, I feel I have regrets in my life, but I cannot think of any...except your wife." _No, Grandfather; you did everything you could. It is I who carries the guilt greater than you. _

He was saying his last words to his grandson in the best way he knew how. "Only I regret leaving Sasuke's life - and now you, after all this time, the remaining family I have left - but in any event, all who have received the blessing of life must one day return that life. My time has come after a lifetime of suffering and hardship...but now, when the twilight of my life finishes its cycle, I'll finally see my brother, your brother, and your parents. This is the first time my heart has felt such freedom," Madara finished with a smile of content.

"Therefore, Itachi...I leave the future in your hands. Not only our people's, but your son's...and your own. Please make yourself happy again when I am gone."

His glassy eyes had shifted past Itachi's shoulder, and the prince had to turn halfway to see what his dying grandfather was talking about: _long pink hair...green eyes muddied like the earth during and after rain..._Sakura.

What the dying Madara was saying was this: he wanted his grandson to remarry as soon as his official mourning was complete, but not for necessity; he just wanted Itachi to experience joy again, as if he'd known all along WHO might be the one, and Madara had his reasons he would not reveal to those beneath his wing.

Except he was sure Sakura, the clever woman she was, must have been figuring the hints out all along.

Itachi bowed his head, his son whimpering and his arms subconsciously bouncing Sasuke up and down. Then he granted his grandfather's final request which was to see his great-grandson one more time, even if he was now too weak to hold the baby...and that smile was of the most impeccable innocence on the little face. He and the others all stayed for the final farewell when the day was over and the new season would be at hand.

_I've been forced to say good-bye to another significant in my life. _

~o~

On the last day of summer before the harvest would begin, Emperor Madara passed on towards the end of his sixth decade of life.

On the next few days afterwards, more rain would come and intensify.

The memorial services would be no different than it had been with the late princess. But internally this time, this was more than just a personal loss for the Crown Prince.

Within days, he would become the new Emperor of Konoha...yet it felt like a heavier burden than he was forced to bear.

~o~

_Things are changing far too much. _

How time would fly by, yet it didn't at the same time.

A year passed since the deaths of both Princess Izumi and then Emperor Madara. That meant advancement for most and decrease for others. In the case of the former, a certain someone took up the mantle which was predestined since his birth.

You heard correctly: the man she secretly loved was now crowned Emperor Itachi Uchiha of Konoha.

And there was no doubt that, with his "leadership", there might be something to try and change or just accept as it was. She never talked to him about such things, so she had no idea what to expect, except one thing or two. This was discussed the night before his coronation, when Sasuke was sleeping near them.

"Given both our sides -" He was referring to their gender sides. "- seldom discuss matters of state, I feel I could confide in you about this. Because of the threats of thievery especially at night, I am considering discussing this matter with the Oosutsuki in hopes to start making our people safer that way."

Women were educated to know many things, but as he said, matters of state were another. Yet Sakura heard enough talk and had been with her late mistress many times to have a couple near experiences with bandits - each time narrowly getting away unscathed. Even Emperor Madara tried to resolve the issue by decreeing each citizen a partial amount of land, though for some reason, the Oosutsuki rejected the idea. Thus, the nobility didn't own property per se and only got rights to income from the land.

Part of her worried that this time might not work out, and she had to worry about the consequences.

_But on second thought, if only to lessen the bandit crisis. I'd rather us be safe..._

Though, she could also understand a little bit where they came from. She was from a family that was not even close to poverty but lived in a respectable household. There were people who had it harsher than the nobility. Which gave all the more reason for her to believe in Itachi...

This information made her frustrated that she couldn't take part in the system, because morals alone could do so much.

The issue ended up being debated, and it wasn't like real change occurred overnight, or even into the next year to come. By this time in the present, winter began when the second to last month of the year came to a close. The snow began to take foot on the grounds. The fact the seasons changed even after Emperor Madara's passing signified life changing as it was. There was no such thing as permanent.

This train of thought could be said of her own position which had long been chief lady-in-waiting to the late princess.

Not only was she named guardian of the baby Prince Sasuke, she was also promoted to head of the household, and that was a great responsibility. But she didn't mind at all, because it gave her a purpose in life - and that meant better respect from the women beneath her.

That also included her own sleeping space to keep, and a private area to bathe especially when it was cold and snowing - just like now. After a long day and now to dwell on her thoughts, even comb her long hair out - but she had no intentions of ruining Izumi's comb in water. Hence, she had her own for this job.

Sakura leaned back and exhaled, dipping herself lower beneath the spring, tempted to duck her head since luxury for her status was seldom. She could imagine how she looked from overhead: a formless mass of pink against smoky gray that was the indoor spring. She let herself get lost in the paradise, ready to go to sleep after this...

_Despite the bruising force, there was a warmth that made her feel tender and safe, reassured, but it couldn't happen. Sakura managed to break it off and turned her face away, then her body, but that got her cream-colored layer off easily, and next to come as she made way for the outside of the so-called protective screen was the shirt - which ended up exposing her breasts which she had to turn away as quickly as she could..._

That bruising kiss he gave her that night as well as the forceful removal of her clothing rose "unbidden" under the water...but it had been going on even long before then. All of which she had been fighting to shove down all this time, haunting her with a vengeance now that his wife was dead.

Ino's statements were no better, either.

_Nor is this feeling in my body...and my heart._

Over a year had gone by since Izumi's death, and that meant he had less than two more years of official mourning before he could even think to take another wife; part of her assumed he never would since he already had a son, but besides women dying in childbirth, or natural causes for anyone, even child deaths were just as common. Itachi could need a spare, which was unspoken but known.

It was difficult to not think about Itachi nowadays, especially since he was the emperor now - and a just and fair one, at that. So far, he was able to keep the peace, perhaps better than his grandfather ever did.

Unlike with his brother, he didn't seem to go and visit his wife's resting place at her clan residence; she liked to think that it would cause him further pain and stick in the past. _It seems he took what I said to heart, when we were at his brother's grave. _In a way, it made her happy, but when the season was over and the snow was clearing, that meant they had to find a way to clear that busy schedule so they could head out to the Miyazaki property and pay respects to Princess Izumi.

She sat back up, deciding she had enough, then hoisted herself out and onto the edge, her rear end firmly cut into without leaving a mark. Her long hair was wet enough to have parts lumped together, which called for her personal comb, and water trickled down her naked flesh to land onto the wooden plank. She shivered at these sensations as well as the ones that she was unable to keep at bay any longer...and it frightened her more than before.

_A look into the eyes never lies...he still sees me, and I know that I should love him now. But he's the emperor now, and I am his son's guardian as well as the household head. _

She closed her eyes, but it didn't stop the tears from scalding her cheeks which was minor compared to the hot springs. Her breasts were now aching at the same time as her heart, and wrapping her arms around herself, hair now straightened down her back, didn't help any better.

Why did love have to hurt so much?

~o~

_Cherry blossom petals were falling before his eyes._

_All was black, and the pink was stark against the canvas like a painting. _

_He was running through it all - towards _them.

Father and Mother.

Sasuke - my brother.

Grandfather.

_Izumi_.

~o~

He hadn't had that dream since Sasuke - his brother - passed on, and it involved just him and their parents, but now his wife and grandfather had been added to the mix.

_I keep losing everyone I love. _

Itachi sat upright in bed, staring at the darkness which had the single candle lit, and he could only stare at it as this thought came to mind. Over a year had passed, the seasons ever evolving, and no doubt the same with the shifting ocean currents.

Being emperor was far more than he used to live. It was essentially the same lifestyle, but it also meant he was a true puppet of the Oosutsuki clan. It meant intrigue and allies to make as well as enemies. Madara had prepared him for this all his life, but he still learned what it was truly like as soon as he was in his grandfather's seat. _The only blessing is that I have Shisui by my side as always, and the minister on my right who has full support. _

The same could not be said for the left side, for when he brought forth the idea of advancing the economy for their country - and decrease the threats of bandits upon them during the nights - the Left was outraged that he wanted to turn his attention to the "poor people", but he insisted that it was based on their own safety. There could be other ways to keep their way of life as it was.

He had his work cut out for him, but no one said it would be easy.

_Imagine this: always fighting for survival. And there is limited trading within our own country as it is. Give an example that a mere messenger can be given a used kimono or another useful object as a reward rather than something they use for themselves. _

_It also means there has to be a better police force, which is the reason for the increase in bandits. _

Besides these troubling affairs of state, there was the matter of his own heart yet again. He took to drinking lots of wine and decreasing his sweet tooth in his mourning, though Sakura was there along with the doctor. "You shouldn't do things like this when you are suffering immensely. At least let me help you." Those words were enough for him to just listen for her sake - and then his health.

Sakura was now head of the royal household besides raising his son in place of his mother, because Itachi knew she more than earned it. It meant rewarding her a more respectable position, higher than just a mere maid. Only that was not all, and during this confining winter season in which the snow touched the grounds, the clouds dark and gray mostly but no blizzards for the time being, he found the courage to admit it to himself. A year after his beloved wife's passing, with less than two more years to go for official mourning.

This _was _what his grandfather meant on his deathbed.

Itachi Uchiha tried burying his heart, but he still desired Sakura even after his Izumi died, though because of his experiences with Konan - and despite the fact they could try to express it openly now - there was the fear of the consequences. _Possible scorn from the court ladies, as well. _

And there was the fact she could feel utter guilt because her mistress and mother of her charge was dead.

**I have no idea the official written grieving term during the Heian period, but the anime of "Genji Monogatari" is stated by the prince himself that the time for him and anyone else to grieve for their lost spouse is three years. **

**Despite the fact the Heian period was an unusually long, peaceful period, it's said the economy was weakened and therefore meant poverty for all but a small percentage of inhabitants, such as the aristocrats themselves. Thus the samurai later took power because of the incompetent nobility. By 1000, the government no longer knew how to handle the currency, and money was dwindling. There was also limited trading going on, as far as anyone knew. The Fujiwara clan rulers also played a part in the economic failure, which resulted in bandits attacking especially at night. **

**Earlier when I began this story, there was no major focus on the economy, but now with Itachi becoming emperor, I felt it was time to pay a good amount of attention, though since information is limited, you can only do your best. **

**This brings me now to the matter that is who are his friends and who are his enemies. In Genji's tale, the Minister of the Left supported his end, but when his half-brother (the Crown Prince) came to power, the Right opposed. This faction drew up support for the malicious concubine who was the mother of the Crown Prince; Genji's mother was his father the emperor's favorite was an opponent of this malevolent concubine Kokiden. (demon face) Petty revenge and need for advancement is what this shit is, if you ask me. **

**Review please. :D Love appreciated for the wait. **


	10. Comb of Wind in the Blossoms

**Before we get started with this new chapter, I got another fun fact about the Heian period, specifically with marriage and divorce: "Heian court marriages were arranged and often polygamous. A man could have several wives, though a woman could have only one husband. There was no formal marriage ceremony; rather the details of the marriage were privately agreed upon between the father of the bride-to-be and her suitor. Divorce could be initiated by the husband or wife, and both parties were free to remarry again after." (website being owlcation, article "Women in the Heian Court: Wives, Concubines and Lovers")**

**Song by Enya in the chapter title, though it is really "The Comb of the Winds".**

**It's a miracle I managed to get this out, because three days ago was my birthday, but I still feel and look young as ever despite being a few years away from the third decade. :D And that night, my family and I went to Texas Roadhouse to celebrate.**

**Today: HAPPY EASTER! **

Chapter Ten

Comb of Wind in the Blossoms

He did _not _anticipate her request in the slightest.

"I wish to go away for a while from court, however Your Majesty can grant. But I can also take Prince Sasuke with me and watch over him. I'll make sure he is safe."

The rosette knelt before him, head bowed and unable to LOOK at him. The kimono she wore today was bold and bright, like she was: innocent white splashed with the blossoms she was named after as well as roses, all of which were pink, and the sash was red. "Sakura, are you sure about this? This must be a family emergency?" Itachi questioned, opening his fan and holding it before himself.

"It is. My father's health is on the decline, and it's been ages since I have seen him after my mother's death." But she sounded too...formal for this to be a "family emergency". He suspected there was more than that. "His doctors say he doesn't have long to live -"

"Then please, feel free to remain with him until then."

It was just the two of them at the moment, except for Shisui, now captain of the guard. But despite that, something within Itachi felt like it was going to fall again. Winter was coming to an end, and within a few months, his official mourning would come to an end. That meant he would have the choice to go out and find another wife - _and stepmother for Sasuke. _But he already made his choice which lay right in front of him.

Only now she was asking to leave court just to help care for her ailing father, and to take the little prince with her.

_Which means that I am forced to wait much longer for her. _

Itachi turned his attention to the sound of the happy cries of "Father" in such a carefree manner, and he smiled when the little boy arrived with his former wet nurse, now other caregiver, with him. "My son," he said, accepting the child's small but warm and calming embrace. He was almost three years of age; time really seemed to fly by, and a part of him wished that it wasn't so. Unfortunately, it wasn't like he could spend ALL his time with his only child, which was the social norm. The mother was more involved than the father, which he also found was against all's wishes.

"When shall you leave, Sakura?"

"On the morrow. Ino should stay and look after things in my place," she replied. "I can protect the prince and myself just well."

That was all there was to it. Afterwards, he dismissed her with the trouble on his mind, with his heart under lock for now, and there were other important matters to be concerned with in the court.

The main opposition on the Left was a man named Danzo, who had been his late grandfather's greatest rival and was ever constantly scheming for power, which was no secret to anyone. _Well, just rumors: meddling with matters of religion and rank appointment...as if he were planning to usurp the throne for himself. _

What Emperor Itachi intended to do now was secretly hatch his own schemes to see that this troublesome old man not cause any damage of his own, or even think to take HIM off this seat. There was no way even the Oosutsuki clan would agree to such a thing without a good reason - not even with Danzo Shimura's past.

During the reign of Madara Uchiha, the Right had strong influences politically but didn't boast about it, and as far as his grandson was concerned, it would have to stay that way - but it also meant he had to find a way to appease the Left without inciting a great conflict within these walls.

So, Shisui did warn him to be vigilant...as well as to make sure that both Sakura and his son, the heir apparent, were not in immediate danger.

And today - the next day, she would leave with the small boy as planned - he watched them from the other side of the screen as she read to him an old story which he recalled first reading to his younger brother when they were children. _The tale of the traveling soldier from the west who visited the house of an ogre in the snow. _

Seeing that made him think of happy times long past, and it was from that moment he decided that he would start taking what was in front of him - and never let it go again.

Which happened in the night that came, but without forcing what was meant to be.

"Your Majesty," Sakura said, looking over at him from her place within her walls painted with the majestic blossoms in her name. This very same screen she was in when he first came to her that night. But he stayed where he was, kneeling in the opened entrance. He smiled at her.

"How many times have I asked you to continue calling me Itachi? I know I am emperor, but how long have we known each other?"

She nodded, taking his point. "But what brings you here tonight?"

"To ask you even if it is the wrong time," Itachi answered, bracing himself for the worst and prepared to take it all. "Something that will take place after my official mourning comes to an end..." And she interrupted him gently, turning her face away then and there.

"You want me as more than Sasuke's guardian."

He couldn't read into her tone when she figured out his intentions. "That's right, but you don't have to answer that right now. I wanted to wait until you returned, but...I fear now I could never get that chance if something happens to you and Sasuke while you are both so far away from me," Itachi confessed, his own words a harsh breath to his ears. "I feel I have waited long enough."

Sakura turned her head only halfway back, though not meeting eye to eye with him. It was then that he noticed the comb in her hand - _Izumi. _Her voice was soft, too, but audible for his ears. "I have been dwelling on the possibility of you asking this of me."

The light of hope illuminated within his heart. _She knew...she knew all along. _

"But I wish I could give you my answer at a time like this," Sakura said, lowering her comb before the mirror and her teeth-blackening kit. "I want to announce it to the entirety of Konoha with you, but I feel now isn't the time. Not with what is on your plate at this very moment." _Danzo and the issue with settling the bandit crisis. _

She had her points, but that was for him to worry about. He had to slide further into the area while keeping his distance. "That is hardly important compared to you and I. Besides, love is...love. Two people are allowed to follow their hearts," he said, feeling like he had taken a new step towards freedom. "And it's not something that is made to destroy a country, either."

There, he said it: without saying the three words directly, he confessed what was stronger than pure desire...and it was _love. _It had been all this time, and he'd seen it in her eyes. "You also wanted something secure and certain, so I'll give it to you. Isn't that what you wished?"

"...yes, but so much more."

That was all it took for him to continue pouring his heart out to her. "Then, when you return, will you...fly with me, spread your wings and soar as your heart desires with me?" For the love of him, he could never recall a time he spoke like this. "I don't ever wish to lose you like I lost Izumi, my brother and the rest of my family. Nor do I wish harm to befall on my son."

_Just like the fan from Izumi says, I'll soar into the night like the raven, and when you return, Sakura, I'll settle my talons and watch the red sun rise...and you'll be with me. _

_No, add Sasuke with us - and we'll be a true family._

Sakura was no longer at her mirror, but now before him - and she took both of his hands into hers. That was all the confirmation he needed.

When she returned from her family home in the country, and after his grieving time came to an end, she would become his new wife and stepmother of his child.

He would finally marry the woman he truly loved, without disrespecting the mother of his son.

~o~

Women would be often shielded away from the world, but she chose to reject the carriage notion in favor of riding to freedom, dressed plainly, with the little prince the same and in her protective arms. Without a care that a lot of people were shocked, she got a horse and rode off, out of the Imperial Palace and its grounds and into the dawn light.

Before she left, she and Sasuke knelt before the palace shrine, praying for good fortune on their journey and eventually back home.

"Look, the ume are in bloom," she said to the little boy who sat in front of her as she rode them slowly through the capital in broad daylight, directing his amaze towards the mentioned blossoms in the trees; she would pick up speed as soon as they were safely away from imperial grounds. Her home wasn't many hours away from here.

_Please look after everything, everyone - and Itachi - well, Ino. _

Her dear friend wanted to go with, but Sakura had to decline. And besides, if what Itachi said was true about the dagger he gave his late wife, then she was happy to put it to the test if trouble came her way. She didn't take lessons for nothing, either.

When she arrived at home, at a small, comfortable but otherwise rickety cottage in the province, there she saw the local physician herself who taught young Sakura everything she knew now. Once did the old woman serve the Miyazaki family only to retire and return home here in the province. "Sakura, good heavens, it's a miracle I am still alive to see you return at last!"

"Tsunade," she answered back, getting off the horse first and then taking the boy underneath both arms to set him down. "You're right; it's been long enough." Looking around, it felt strange and surreal to be within wilder and filthier surroundings compared to the pristine luxury of the Imperial Palace and Miyazaki household. "How is Father?"

Back in the day, Tsunade had been an extremely robust beauty, with long golden hair and lush amber eyes, finished with an average slim body - but with the largest breasts you'd ever see, and to this day, she refused to give her secret to THAT, given women didn't possess any size of that sort. But now, halfway through her fifth decade, her fair hair was silvery white and tied below her neck, her dark golden eyes were deepened somewhat to brown based on everything they'd seen in life, and her infamous breasts sagged a little. Add that her skin was heavily wrinkled like many women at her age. Complete with expressions that ranged from extremely sweet to downright wicked, depending on her mood.

"It's gotten worse since yesterday. If he's lucky - if all of us are - he might last until next month after the cherry blossoms finish their time," Tsunade answered as they were walking up to the house. Her attention fell down to the little boy sticking close to the rosette's side, and her face immediately warmed up. "Oh, this is His Royal Highness!" She paused in her walk and knelt down before the boy who looked at her first with a scared expression before brightening up when he figured out she was friendly. "I'm Tsunade. I cared for your mother and everyone else - but you don't remember me since you weren't born then - and I taught this one everything," she added with a glance up at Sakura who blushed and returned the smile.

Now they were inside, and there her father was, laying there in his cot and covered up with a bucket of water and such next to him. "I didn't think you practiced medicine anymore," Sakura told her old mentor and superior as she released her travel pack to the side of the doorway, the bamboo curtain falling behind her and Sasuke who looked upon his foreign surroundings with wonder, wrinkling his nose in disgust. "Sasuke, this was where I was born. I know this is different than you're used to, but think of this as a little trip to see what the world outside home is like," she said gently, lighting him up.

Tsunade scoffed. "In answer to your question, I WAS enjoying my hard-earned retirement, only for some fool to drag me over here when it got out that he was sick and needed immediate attention. Besides you, that was." She first knelt down beside the man. "Your daughter is here, Kizashi."

He looked so much more...frail since last time she'd seen him, and it had been years. The last time was when she, Lady Izumi and the others moved so her mistress could marry Prince Itachi. Guilt all but molded at her heart. _I'm so sorry I wasn't here, Father. But I am here now and won't leave until it's possible for a positive change. _

Kizashi looked up at her and smiled. When she was a child, he was her hero in every sense of the way. He was once a member of the Uchiha guard before being relieved when he suffered a crippled leg while protecting Prince Itachi from bandits. This was back when Sakura was still a child, shortly before the plague ravaged the land. She went in service, going to the Miyazaki household, while her parents left together for the peasant life.

"There's my girl. It's so good to see you again in my final moments." He reached out and touched her cheek, the action making her close her eyes and try not to sob or tremble. It was hard being here as it was. The little prince looked between his guardian and her father, lower lip trembling as he didn't understand what was going on. "If only your mother could see you now..."

Then he looked at the little boy and acknowledged who this was, while Tsunade dabbed him with her herbal water as well as allowing Sakura to give him some to drink; Sasuke sat and watched on with curiosity whilst fidgeting as he was ready to go and play outdoors. There was a lot he could do with so little, but her father's health came first before she could think to show her charge a good time in these conditions.

"I'm proud of what you've become, Sakura," Kizashi told her before he closed his eyes for his rest by the time it was done, and this time, she let the tears roll down her cheeks. She had to turn into Tsunade's embrace and allow the innocent little Sasuke to do the same to her from behind.

~o~

In the weeks that went by, the sakura blossoms arrived at last, but this time when the young emperor stood beneath one of the trees over the great red bridge above the laughing stream...he felt peace rather than sorrow.

He even stood before the grave of his brother and knelt before it, then looked beyond to their parents' - and then their grandfather's who had joined the ranks. _Sasuke, all of you...I've made peace with myself. I can try to finally be happy again..._

_...but I fear it being once more taken from me. Help me have the courage to go to her. _

If any of them, or the Buddha, were listening, then he hoped his prayers would be answered. The festival of these blossoms had just begun, and deep into the event, he would ride out there and go to a certain rosette who was caring for her ailing father and with his son in her care. He just wanted to see them regardless if it were awkward timing or not. And besides that, it had been a long time since he'd seen the countryside where the lesser, unfortunate people lived.

He recalled Kizashi when he was a young boy, who saved his life and thus was crippled in the process. His grandfather let him go just like that, because the man had served his purpose - which always secretly angered Itachi to no end. _No one deserves to be released after sacrificing a part of themselves for someone else. _

Meanwhile, there was news around that proved a loss on the Left but rejoiced the Right - except him. The word was that _Danzo's _home had been attacked and burned by bandits - and the man himself was killed. So had been others after him. The emperor's advisors, including Shisui, voiced that it was one less threat to his position to worry about, which made him snap.

"This may be, but nevertheless, it's an utter outrage! This may occur commonly, but it's NOT how things are done fairly just to be protected whether you asked or not. Whoever did this will sooner or later be brought to justice. Were there any witnesses?"

There were none, as usual. But someone would come forward eventually. _Let this be a reminder to those who savagely attack someone important, regardless of their threats to the emperor's position. _

Though, privately to himself and Shisui, he would be able to focus on his attempt to reform without difficulty - for now.

For the time being was the focus on the upcoming sakura blossom festival, and it made him think of HER who was up at the nearby province, caring for her possibly dying father. He was sure he understood what she must be going through, but to dwell on how it must be affecting her...

He decided that he couldn't stay away from her any longer, not even during this time which was supposed to be celebratory for all of them and not mourning - not anymore for some. So, he made a resolution that day; thus, he brought Shisui before him and told the plan.

"You and I are going out there to assist them, but we blend in with the crowd. It will not be forever, and the official story will be that I have gone out on a tour of the village outside for a few days, even view the cherry blossom trees, but no one is to know of my...relationship with her," he ordered sternly.

"Yes, Your Majesty. I'd never say a word without your permission! You've known me all our lives." Shisui bowed his head two, three times out of enthusiasm which made the emperor chuckle and fan himself in those times.

The word was out, but the truth was that he would be gone the next day, and no one would be shocked he chose to leave on his own by surprise with only his captain of the guard in tow.

_In case any bandits do come, we cut them down. _

He set out late in the night, no matter there being bandits, but he dressed plainly - the clothes borrowed from a servant - with his real garments in a travel pack but folded neatly, so that the next day, he would be his real self to the world. _Ingenious way to protect myself from those ruffians, as Shisui and his men call them. _

They paused at one point during the early hours of the morning, and sleep called them both. Their horses were beneath a tree after they crossed through the forest. It was an adventure in itself, and by morning, they would arrive at the province.

Dawn would break on them through the trees above, waking them and prompting them to get water from the stream they came across before journeying on. From here on would the grass get greener and greener. He enjoyed the fresh scent of that grass mingled with the flowers of spring and morning dew.

Before noon broke, they arrived at their destination.

"Wow, even the peasants are enjoying themselves despite their conditions," Shisui noted when they arrived on foot, leading their horses by the reins; by the looks of this, they could be mistaken as messengers of the emperor, but the two men knew what to do in case anyone attacked them. _But we came too far to run away now. _

Even here, amongst wooden huts and fire pits, poorly dressed but otherwise cheerful people were trading meager meals with everyone they knew and sitting underneath all the cherry blossom trees available, with others finding spots to just enjoy the sights. All of this made the emperor smile with pride. This was what Danzo and his supporters wanted to destroy for his own gain.

After speaking to a rather pleasant woman with a young girl - her daughter, no doubt - behind her, he finally got a lead on the woman matching Sakura's description: she said a "Kizashi" who was a great help to this village was up at his home outside the boundaries and dying, with the healer and the "pink-haired woman" as well as a very young boy by his side to care for him.

_Sakura and my son - and the healer herself? I remember her. _He met old Tsunade a long time ago after he met Izumi, but she had long since retired. He was amazed she was still alive.

And saw her he did when he and Shisui approached the hut of the talk in town. _More wrinkles, frail-looking now, but a stronger will, I see. _"Oh, it's been a long time, but I never thought I would see Your Majesty in disguise and coming with only one man escort into a place like this," the old woman said with a lift of her bony chin. He chuckled.

"Indeed, Tsunade, but I found the risk worth taking," Itachi answered as he followed her up the path - and that was when he heard music playing in the background. Behind the structure..._a _koto.

And then he saw her, with Shisui on one side and the old woman on the other. Long pink hair flowing over a plain, fair garment, and delicate fingers gliding across the strings of the instrument before the glowing eyes of the small child who squirmed with excitement as he enjoyed the song she was playing for him, unaware that they were being watched - for now.

"So, Your Majesty, what have you come all the way out here for and in the middle of the festival?" Tsunade quipped, lifting a barely-there brow which didn't faze him. He answered readily.

"To honor my grandfather's last wish for myself, and I mean for myself - and her as well as my son. I'm doing everything in my power to try and secure Sasuke's future as I am going to for Konoha. But it will be official as soon as my grieving term is at an end."

His response seemed to please and satisfy her. She huffed, heaving her great chest which wasn't as buxom as he recalled. "And you, Itachi Uchiha, are more man than your grandfather and father used to be - not that I really think ill of them," she said.

It was then that he heard the excited call: "FATHER!"

Sasuke was old enough to walk, but he still had ways to go as he grew older. Still, he managed to reach his father and throw his arms around the legs. Itachi laughed and knelt down to pick his son up, holding him close and accepting chaste kisses from him...before being approached by the woman he came all the way out here for.

"Itachi...what are you doing here?" Sakura didn't sound dismayed or annoyed, but plainly curious until she showed her true reaction.

He answered her in a single breath. "I came out here, all the way, as fast as I could on horse. I couldn't...stay away any longer, Sakura."

**I was rereading previous chapters of this story to finally introduce Sakura's family, even at their final moments, so to avoid plot holes and the likes - tell me if anyone remembers from before that this is just right or not. :) **

**Reviews much loved and appreciated, thanks very much! :D**


	11. The Splendor in the Grass

**My sincerest apologies for keeping you all waiting, but here you are. :) This is the final chapter in this great love story. **

**After those two great reviews from sahi . sony . 1, I was upset by what was said recently. It was meant that Sakura and Itachi end up together in the end from the beginning; what you said was an utter insult. But no matter; there is still love and support much appreciated. :')**

**Reminder once again: polygamy was NORMAL in Heian-era Japan, so I understand it is hard to believe in today's standards. **

**Fun facts today which includes the difference between Buddhism and Shinto: Shinto is a religion to emphasize the joys of the natural cycle of life, being in harmony with society as well as nature itself; all of this is done with rituals, respect for those around you, cleanliness of body and mind, and celebration altogether. Buddhism, on the other hand, is just preparing for the next life after this and thus denies everything worldly with meditation and prayer. (from Yahoo!Answers as to the differences between the religions)**

**So, there is a movie called "Splendor in the Grass". That's one of many TCM names. **

Chapter Eleven

The Splendor in the Grass

Itachi had come all the way out here...for her and for Sasuke.

He didn't have to do this, but he _did._

Her father's health began to take a turn for the worst, despite everything she and Tsunade could do. In fact, the prayers and the sutras given from the local temple served as a reminder of when Princess Izumi suffered and died after her pregnancy.

"Perhaps they could help, but in the end, it's the Buddha's decision when it's time for him to go," Itachi told her when they were alone one day. Sasuke was taking his afternoon nap, the old woman back in the village for her other patients and thus entrusted Sakura with her own father - but the rosette doubted even her own hands or the paper sutras could keep Kizashi's final days at bay much longer.

_It's the Buddha's decision...just like his grandfather said on his deathbed. _

There was no way to stop the flood from hitting the ground, and it took an effort to turn her face so that the salty water didn't touch her clothing. "I haven't even seen him for years, and only once when Mother died. Even I couldn't save her, either..."

One of his arms came to wrap around her and hold her close. She leaned into his embrace, needing it so much and uncaring now if anyone would see. Shisui might as well be the only one allowed.

~o~

She couldn't stay away from him no matter how hard she tried. Three years were enough to put her at peace, but with her impending illness, she feared her time was running out, so she sought him out because her daughter - who was still young enough - needed a guardian.

And he was the one.

Never did she think she would see him HERE of all places; she just happened to spot him from a distance as she paused here in this province for her stay. _I'm here for one thing only that I had to come all the way here alone; I may not have much time left, but I have already said goodbye to Aoi just in case. _Another cough wracked her body that she covered her mouth with her cherished fan she kept all these years.

She never intended to return here, but her soul was tugged in that direction in which she had to ask for the Buddha's protection even if her prayers might not be answered - especially with what her inner spirit sneered at her for.

_I refuse to let the fact get to my heart that _I _killed his wife. I didn't even want her to die...but it still happened. _

Trying to tell herself that did little good. And what she saw added to everything. It was old wounds slowly coming open again.

It was also old feelings she thought she had locked away, no matter how hard she tried. Seeing her old love and that pink-haired woman - as well as the young boy she knew was his son - in this province and blending in with the crowd...

...it convinced her he must have taken a new lover when his official mourning wasn't expired yet.

The way he looked at her was what Lady Konan remembered all too well, and it made her heart squeeze into itself. Her eyes did that, closing tightly and keeping the burning tears at bay - a burning which rose in her heart and she slapped her hand over, pulling at her kimono in the process and threatening to tear it into shreds.

That dark voice had come to her mind: _**See? You are feeling it again. You never should have come.**_

The spirit was right, but it was too late to turn back now. She came too far to do that.

~o~

Her father died before the cherry blossom event would be over.

Sakura was kneeling before the statue of the village temple, hysterical to her core and weeping uncontrollably - and dressed in black. Her tears hit the wooden planks of the floors. Her heart was torn into shreds; this had to be how Itachi felt when he lost his mother and then his brother, if not the way he lost Izumi.

What did it matter if you lost your family or a true love? The pain was all the same to her.

Itachi knelt with her at the shrine, and so did several villagers - and Shisui, the little prince whom no one knew about, and old Tsunade. Everyone really loved Kizashi when he was alive, so here they were now to mourn him and honor him.

The services would begin, but Sakura had no intentions of staying here forever. She had duties to go back to eventually. Part of her wanted to do that, and for the very reason, she wished Itachi would go back to the palace, take his son with him, and return to his duties. Alas, he refused and declared he would be with her and help her get through this.

"Shisui, my son and I will remain here, as the official story remains. No one will be bothered if I am gone for a while, because there are people beneath my right wing that I trust to ensure there is no trouble. And it's not like anyone will quarrel - much," he added with a chuckle, "at this time of year. As far as anyone is concerned, I am touring this village and can manage on my own. I didn't learn how to use the sword for nothing," he promised, managing to make her smile a little more. "That means it will be just you and me alone for the first time."

His words shocked her utterly; it wasn't the first time, but he had gotten all the more emboldened since abandoning his seat for this wilderness where he would be at risk of bandits if anyone learned who he really was.

"That also means I have you to back me up."

He was referring to the dagger from his late wife, and she reached to lay her hand on her left hip which was where it was hidden. She smirked, thinking to herself that she was all too happy to oblige as promised.

The next few days were spent with Sasuke, as if they had become a real family when she and Itachi weren't even married yet. The little prince happily ran through the falling petals from the trees, watched by his father and caregiver. It was under this spot that they had a picnic prepared at Sakura's family home - but now, she was considering letting someone else have it when she returned to the Imperial Palace. There were too many painful memories there.

_Just look at these trees...the flowers swaying in the breeze...and many falling to the grass - all of it splendid as a painting. _

And here she was in the kimono he'd brought with him, stating Ino was kind enough to give it to him since Sakura didn't deserve to miss this event without it; it made her laugh and shake her head. Good old Ino with knowing the white lavished with rich pink blossoms was her best.

She found herself reciting a poem for the moment and all its intricate details that seemed to move the man sitting beside her.

_"Splendor does the cherry blossom create amongst the grass. Tiny feet pad across the earth, leaving the trail in wake without a care. The man and the woman longing sit beneath the tree of transience, bridging the gap of the great river to cross."_

What she was telling him was here they were now, after many years of waiting and her righteous will to refuse being his concubine. After these years of losing people they loved together, they were going to finally make the best of what they had left in life. And he gazed right back at her over his fan with the Uchiha crest and the verse from his late wife; she batted her lashes in return as she did the same with her own, this one with the flowers above their heads.

The spark between them could very much rekindle the actual flames.

Sakura then excused herself by saying she had to get more water from the stream that wasn't too far away; it was actually just beyond the trees down this hill, which was one of many views around this tree. Picking up the small bucket she brought from home, she headed for the destination, glad she could do these things without trouble and without fear of trouble coming...but if you said such things to yourself, it meant something would really come your way.

And that was just what she did as soon as she rose from the riverside, bucket in hand, but when she turned around, she was startled and dropped it so that water splashed onto the grass and the container itself lay on its side.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Sakura demanded, hands around her hips, one of them placed over where her dagger was waiting to be drawn if the situation became threatening.

The woman was garbed in plain black, her hair blue as twilight. But it was also cut short above her shoulders rather than long and touching the ground. _She's someone who renounced the world; is she a member of a temple? _

"I was going to ask you the same question," the blue-haired woman answered, "and what is your business with Itachi Uchiha?"

Something inside Sakura twitched, realization dawning on her. This stranger knew the emperor, but he never once mentioned..._wait. Now I know who she is._ And for that, her fingers closed around the beginning of the hilt of her hidden weapon. "I see it now. You're Lady Konan of Nagato. I thought you left Konoha not even three years ago."

The other woman stayed where she was, golden eyes hardening and flashing from the core. "It doesn't surprise me that you know who I am, for you recall my history with him," she said, voice now cold as ice. Sakura nodded, gritting her teeth.

"Have you come back for him now that his wife is gone, his pain is healing, but his official grieving is yet to come to an end? You have the gall to show up after all this time and when he is the emperor. What's your business, damn it?" Sakura demanded hotly, her finger itching to draw it out...

"Because no matter how hard I tried to stay away, I can't." The woman then slapped a hand over her mouth, coughing for a little bit - which told Sakura she must have contracted something, but there was no way to determine without further examination, which wasn't about to happen in these circumstances. "It's been long enough, and I must see him. Time on my side is short."

The rosette loathed how she spoke of her heart broken in not so many words, and part of her didn't hold her to a fault since Itachi never once directly told her that their relationship should have ended. _I thought things had resolved by now, but here she is before my eyes. _

"You'd do well to leave at once. He has no business with you now; you're just going to reopen his wounds by being here," Sakura hissed, defending him now with her heart. "If you wanted to heal yourself, then you should have stayed away."

Perhaps those were the wrong words to say, because she saw she provoked the blue-haired woman based on the narrowing of those eyes.

"And what about you? Would you happen to be his new _lover_?"

Angrily, Sakura drew out her knife after the patience wore off. "No, but I am someone who is watching over his child with the woman you murdered," she snarled, brandishing the knife. The straight blade gleamed brightly in the sunlight, the inlaid pearl a rainbow that didn't lessen the threat. However, the action didn't faze Konan, and her voice remained calm despite her stoned features.

"I never did that myself, you inferior woman. It was a wicked side of myself that I never knew about...but I confess that his abandonment without even an explanation left me suffering a torment I could never withstand. I fought to not let it consume me, but everything he unlocked in me without trying too hard made me damn it all. I..." She squeezed her eyes closed.

"...I loved him so much that his wife was in the way, and I wished we could have been together - but I NEVER wanted her to die the way she did. And I also cursed the one who spurned him, rejected him for her own selfish reasons..."

For a second, she considered lowering her weapon as she listened to this woman's story, but despite understanding now and feeling guilty as she knew who the unnamed woman was, the witch still was responsible for what happened to an innocent woman. And Sakura had no intentions of saying she was the one who "rejected" Itachi.

Konan finished: "And I left with my daughter afterwards, to atone for these sinful feelings, before he and everyone else learned I had been responsible as you accuse me."

"Yet you are here now, because you failed locking your heart away...but you'll have to go through me now before you dare to reach him," the rosette growled, and so she lunged in the direction of the woman who also drew a weapon of her own, having come prepared herself.

She was finally going to protect herself and her man back there - against this jealous woman.

~o~

Sakura did not yet return from the river; he began to worry especially when his young son ran up to him and asked him when Aunt Sakura was coming back.

His instincts told him something was terribly wrong, so he was going to investigate. Shisui was in town enjoying himself and probably picking up a "nice girl" as he used to often boast about having one day to settle down with. For that, since he was alone, he had to pick up his sword which was laying innocently in its hilt. "Son, stay here or at least hide in the tree," he ordered. "I'm going to find your aunt." The boy nodded and slipped into the great crack beneath the large tree trunk.

In hand was ebony based with gold, and the casing bore a skillfully crafted dragon. If Sakura was in danger, he would cut them down - but when he arrived at the source of the struggle not even deep in the woods, he heard himself gasp in shock at what he saw.

_Sakura...and KONAN. Both of them fighting each other out with their daggers, but I don't see any wounds...yet. _And that meant he had to stop it before it got worse. He bellowed out to them both.

"SAKURA! KONAN! THAT IS _ENOUGH_!"

Both women ceased their dance of the blades, and by this time, both of them were unkempt to the hair. When he looked upon the shocking appearance of his former lover, he almost couldn't believe it: _she looks the same as I remember...yet different. Her hair is shorter. Because she renounced the world..._

_...but WHY is she here?!_

And more importantly, why was she fighting his son's guardian and the woman he loved?

"...Itachi." Seeing him made her fall to her knees, and her curved knife hilted with lush brown wood fell down to stab the earth. "You're finally before my eyes for the first time in many years." Her words came out in a harsh breath, but while they were genuinely honest, they did nothing to soothe his heart like they used to. He had to demand to know what was transpiring between them.

"She attacked me first," Konan breathed out, reaching up to tame her frazzled hair, and his attention shifted to Sakura who was glaring with two pools of green fire at the other woman...which said just about everything.

_She intended to kill Konan herself._

"It was her who admitted she was responsible for the death of Princess Izumi...the spirit we could never find," Sakura said harshly, still holding out her pearl-inlaid knife. She took more raspy breaths. "I was going to kill her for causing you and all of us such pain..."

Konan...she was the one. She was the spirit - _oh, gods, how could...?!_

Now he had no idea how to take in all of this, except with a myriad in his heart: contempt, coupled with guilt and pain threatening to renew itself. He looked upon the one whose arms he'd fallen into because of his then one-sided love for the rosette who continued to keep her weapon aimed at the other like a wild cat. This was the fierce Sakura few spoke of. But while it roused him, it disturbed him because this woman had a child of her own; to kill her meant depriving the girl of her mother just as Sasuke had been deprived of his own.

_My heart is protected from being shredded all over again. It doesn't surprise me that it was her all along, but it is still painful. Sakura, please don't do anything, _he pleaded with his eyes when they locked with hers. _You only dig two graves when you go down the road to avenge one person and yourself. Killing her won't bring Izumi back...and you'd give her daughter the same loss as us. _

Her blade - Izumi's blade - lowered a little then, but remained up all the same.

And the blue-haired woman finally spoke. "What she says is the truth, but I swear on my Aoi's life that I never wanted it to happen. I didn't realize it until after your wife passed; it was a wicked spirit I never knew there was. When I missed you greatly without so much as a word of your absence...my soul left my being. And so I left Konoha without a word other than the letter." Golden brown eyes lowered to the earth.

"But my time is running short. I am gravely ill." There was a wince on her face and a hand going to the middle of her body for emphasis. "I managed to come all the way out here just to see you one last time, and to entrust my daughter guardianship."

An invisible nail had been driven to his core when she told him she was dying but still ventured out here just to see him. All the way from Ame for THIS. "Because your daughter has no one left, and you still trust me despite what I have done to you," Itachi finally spoke. It all made sense now, and because she never truly recovered from him, this was the last chance.

He chose to give that chance to her and accept this. Just because that poor girl needed someone in her life even if they were a border apart, and Sakura seemed to be considering this and therefore put the knife away. _Thank you, Sakura._

"This will be the least I can do for you to pay for the consequences I played a part in. I feared losing Izumi when we were first married - the way I lost Sasuke and my mother, and my fears did become reality when she painfully gave us our son. But even long before then, I saw another woman who wasn't my wife, and it was because of my _love _for that woman who refused my advances that I found comfort in your arms. I never saw everything becoming what it is now."

And for that, he made Konan so unhappy and worried that she had no way to reach him until it was too late.

Sakura remained where she was standing, though her face was hard as river pebbles. _I see it in your eyes, however; you feel guilty, but we both know it was necessary._ And that face was softening now with his decision and understanding that the young girl over in Ame needed someone after her mother was gone. "Well, I'll have difficulty forgiving you, but if Itachi agrees, then so will I."

Itachi smiled at her decision to be compassionate for a child's sake. And Konan forced one of her own.

"Then will you both be so kind as to return me to the border between this land and Ame, where I shall spend the rest of my days in peace now that you have given me what I desired?"

If they agreed to that, it meant first taking Sasuke back to Shisui's protection while they both went out together. His captain and best friend would guard his son with his life, so that was enough for him and the rosette to venture out there with this woman who was wronged as much as all of them were. There was going to be no more bloodshed, and certainly no more tears today.

He would never forget Konan's letter, so during the short journey - with Sakura on his back and holding onto him - he found himself repeating everything word for word to her and the blue-haired one beside them who was shocked that he recalled everything so well.

"You said you had to leave and attempt to mend everything yourself, that there would be more pain if you stayed...yet here you are now. But I see it is truly desperation to grant guardianship of your child, which I am too happy to oblige to for both your sakes." He sighed. "To know another child will lose their mother..."

Sakura interrupted him, and it was amazing that her earlier anger was subsiding. "Then we're going to provide your daughter with the happiness she needs even if she is far away from us," she said, "and her well-being will match the level of Sasuke's as soon as we are married, right, Itachi?"

Warmly, he agreed with her, then finished speaking to his former mistress as soon as they reached their destination. "Please, take care, Konan, and try to find the peace you sought. Perhaps love never dies, but there are ways to make it less painful. No one ever said it was easy." _Something I know too well._

Konan's cheeks now had two perfect tears streaking down them. She lowered her face, but her words were heard clearly.

"Thank you both, and please forgive me for the pain I unwittingly caused you. I am now...at peace."

That was the final time they would see her, and the couple were rushing back on the same horse in time for the sky to darken with an incoming storm. They wouldn't make it back in time, so any shrine would suffice.

~o~

_Present..._

"So, that's it - that is our story."

The rain was still pouring if not monstrously as prior, but the sky had grown all the more darker as the day was ending. Here Itachi Uchiha and his future new bride Sakura concluded their tale to the wise old priest who intently listened with all the feelings necessary. _Not even yet a formal proposal, but it _will _happen._

"I am terribly sorry about your late wife, Your Majesty. When I learned of her death, I sympathized for your son...but now I see a new ray of light in this lady," he said when he looked upon Sakura who bowed her head in thanks. "I wish it will last until the cycle ends, but we must cherish what we have while it lives."

They intended to do just that. While the little prince was safely back home under Shisui and Ino's protection, they would spend the night here and then return. _Just the two of us..._

"And, Your Majesty, you've chosen a rare woman to make you alive again and raise your son with you. Regardless if anyone complains."

That alone was enough to make Sakura wipe her eyes with the back of her free hand, with the other lowered to her lap and still holding her comb. The words touched Itachi just as much; perhaps he could someday call this man to help perform the wedding services with the one in the capital. The more, the merrier.

They had a room to share rather than someplace separate, and that meant something which was years in the making and destined.

Behind screen walls, all doubts were cast aside, because no one said that they couldn't do this - and this was a Shinto temple rather than a Buddhist, meant to celebrate life and respect it - and they were confident they would marry after his mourning period to the world would conclude. There was no reason they wouldn't have time for this, especially after what transpired today.

The emperor found he was unable to sleep that night, which the rosette noted as she, too, couldn't keep her eyes closed and drift off into oblivion. "Itachi?"

"I find that I am unable to sleep tonight."

"Because of today?" she asked, pulling her white garment further over herself. He chuckled at both her question and the action.

"Yes, but mostly...it's you." And at long last, here they were so he could speak from the heart without fear. Did it ever feel so wonderful - much more when she looked upon him with the adoration he waited for?

She sputtered ever so lightly, shocked and unsure how it could have been her, but he assured her by leaning down and capturing her lips with his. "Because I am so happy it's difficult to keep my eyes closed." _Pray Konan finally moves on as I feel we now can. _

Sakura raised her head a little higher, and she shifted as if about to stand and leave him, but there was no way she was getting away from him and teasing like that. "You have no fault in any of this. I never thought I would have trouble sleeping since it's never happened that way," he confessed, and it was all true.

The only one, it seemed, who might render him unable to fully rest was _her_.

"You certain you don't want me to leave, Your Majesty?" she asked, laying back against him. He turned into her and wrapped an arm around her warm, sweet body. Already, he couldn't wait anymore.

"Absolutely not. You're my bride now, and my bride should stay close to me...always." _Sakura...my bride..._

She echoed the last word with him, clutching onto him as the last resort. What followed was like a dream where they were free as the falling leaves and tree blossoms.

The removal of both their white _yukata_ was the gentlest of throwing aside tapestries to see what treasure was hidden...and the feast he was granted was worth the long wait. A canvas pale as the moon was framed and enhanced by her long hair sweet as the flowers in the season. She was slim but satisfying enough to meet his hands' needs. But the main attraction was her breasts which were tinier than his late wife's and Konan's; the tips were the right shade as her hair and her lips which his own found way to, before traveling down to her delicate throat and eventually to her breasts which made her cry out if swallowing it down to prevent the sounds of passion from escaping this room. Imagine the horror of the priest and his monks if they caught them!

What they did as man and woman could not compare to him and his wife or even him and the woman who once more left their lives. He couldn't get enough of her enchanting aroma which made him wish that the flower she was named for had such an exhilarating incense; he ravished her from top to bottom without hesitation.

Sakura was everything he dreamed of and more. He couldn't get enough of her body, her ethereal hair, or even her heart.

_This woman is going to be with me to raise my son, to be the one I turn to in great need...and for what we are doing tonight after years of waiting. _

She seemed to be thinking similar thoughts as she had her turn above him, enticing him with great skill despite never seeming to have been with a man before him; she'd waited for him, which thrilled him. She ran her fingers through his hair which was shorter than hers but still long enough to reach his legs, kissed and caressed every contour and muscle to provoke him into arching into her touch.

As promised, there was hardly any sleep that night, but what was lost had been worth what was gained, and it was a love that withstood the test of time.

And as dawn approached, the rain subsided.

The cherry blossoms were still in bloom. Though right now, they did not represent incoming sadness...but the joys of living in the present.

**The confrontation between Sakura and Konan comes from "Rashomon" (at last I bring it to light!) in terms of one of the accounts within. For those of you who haven't seen it, it depicts three parties and a witness who each have different versions of a mystery in 9th-century Japan: the murder of a samurai and the rape of his wife. The bandit's version involved luring the man into the woods on a false finding claim with intention to "sell" - only to ensnare him and tie him up, then bring the wife to her husband...only to be attacked by the woman and her dagger, no direct contact, and ends with having her before her bound husband's eyes. Thus the wife pleas with the bandit and her husband to fight to the death, because having her "shame known to two men is a fate worse than death. I will go with the survivor". And of course, it ends with the samurai dead; the wife runs off, leaving the bandit to run off with her horse and the dead man's weapons. **

**I won't spoil anything else about this gem of a movie, but if you're a fan of Akira Kurosawa, then you must know what I am talking about. :) Anyone new who is interested, feel free to look for it and let meh know how you liked. Dailymotion is a good place to find it, though it is in parts. (Keywords: Rashomon 1950)**

**Sakura WOULD have killed Konan if Itachi hadn't interfered, before anyone says she is useless. (narrows eyes) Because she is a strong-willed woman already in here, intent on avenging her mistress and mother of her charge, it was very likely.**

**In "Genji Monogatari", when Lady Rokujo is on her deathbed, she entrusts the guardianship of her daughter to Genji. Extended in "Aoi no Ue" the Noh play, she becomes an onryo (a vengeful spirit) and attacks Murasaki. **

**Ending with what finally became of ItaSaku: I'd been at a dilemma on whether or not to have them consummate their relationship in a temple of all places. Usually it is considered filthy to do such things on holy grounds, but there was a moment in "Chosen for the Marriage Bed" by Anne O'Brien (one of my favorite love stories ever) in which husband and wife did it in a room they shared for the night in the priory. ;D **

**Hope you all enjoyed this story, so review with much love! :'3**


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